Adidas CEO seeks more time for new strategy after two flops

Berlin

SINCE 2008, Adidas chief Herbert Hainer has abandoned two long-term strategy plans after failing to deliver the promised results. This week, Mr Hainer expects to offer a third such plan - and says he deserves two more years to get it on track.

Mr Hainer, a 60-year-old Bavarian who has been CEO since 2001, last year persuaded the supervisory board to extend his contract through March 2017. That will provide "sufficient time for a smooth transition" to the next CEO, he told employees in a letter released last month as recruiter Egon Zehnder International set out searching for his successor.