Adidas Is Making Cheaper Versions of the Samba and Other Popular Shoes
Adidas AG CEO Bjørn Gulden on Thursday told shareholders that variations of the 2023 FN Achievement Awards Shoe of the Year winner and some of the brand’s other popular sneakers will soon become more accessible.
The promise came during Adidas’ 2024 Annual General Meeting in Fürth, Germany, which took place the morning of May 16. As picked up by Reuters, Gulden signaled to investors that Adidas will continue to push cheaper versions of some of its most popular shoes such as Samba in effort to further grow the trend.
“It’s important to understand that not everyone can afford to buy a shoe for 120 or 150 [euro], but everyone wants to take part in the same trends,” Gulden said. The announcement was accompanied by a slide presentation which showed plans to push similar models at price points ranging from €60 to €80.
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Some of the shoes, such as the Samba-like VL Court, the Campus-adjacent Grand Court, and the Stan Smith-leaning Advantage, are already on the market. During Spring/Summer 2025, there are plans to introduce budget-friendly lifestyle running, Spezial, and Superstar models.
Wales Bonner x Adidas Samba.
The most ubiquitous iteration of the model currently is the Samba OG, which retails starting at $100. Premium makeups of the shoe, such as the popular Wales Bonner collaboration, have been priced as high as $250.
“What we do at the top, 100 [dollars] and higher, we’re bringing that down,” Gulden said.
The Adidas CEO added that the lower-priced models will be sold through budget retailers such as Deichmann and Intersport.
Footwear brands will commonly offer “takedown” models, which feature similar designs as popular shoes at a fraction of the price, often forgoing premium materials and technologies to cut down on costs.
In related news, Adidas will release next week a ruffle-covered Samba collaboration with Chinese designer Caroline Hu.
