Asics

Asics (アシックス) is a Japanese multinational corporation that produces sportswear. The name is an acronym for the Latin phrase anima sana in corpore sano (translated by Asics as "a sound mind, in a sound body"). Asics is best known for its sneakers, but also produces other footwear such as sandals, as well as clothing (T-shirts, jackets, hoodies, swimwear, compression garments, leggings, socks) and accessories (bags, backpacks, caps). It is headquartered in Kobe, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan.

History


Asics began as Onitsuka Co., Ltd on September 1, 1949. Founder Kihachiro Onitsuka began manufacturing basketball shoes in his hometown of Kobe, Hyogo Prefecture, Japan. The range of sports activities serviced by the company expanded to a variety of Olympic styles used since the 1950s by athletes worldwide. Onitsuka became particularly known for the Mexico 66 design, in which the distinctive crossed stripes (now synonymous with the company) were featured for the first time; martial artist Bruce Lee helped popularize the shoe. Onitsuka Tiger merged with fishing and sporting goods company GTO and athletic uniform maker Jelenk to form Asics Corporation in 1977; Onitsuka was named president of the new company. Despite the name change, a vintage range of Asics shoes are still produced and sold internationally under the Onitsuka Tiger label. In 2015, Asics launched its "Asics Tiger" lifestyle brand to market sportswear inspired by the company's designs of the 1970s to 1990s.

Asics bought the Swedish outdoor brand Haglöfs for ¥11.4 billion ($128.7 million) on July 12, 2010. In February 2016, Asics acquired fitness app Runkeeper.

Asics generated ¥484.6 billion in net sales and ¥19.9 billion in net income in fiscal year 2022. 53% of the company's income came from the sale of performance running shoes, 20% from other shoes, 7% from apparel and equipment, and 9% from Onitsuka Tiger. 25% of the company's sales were in Japan, 22% in North America, 27% in Europe, 13% in China and 19% in other regions.

In 2021, Asics launched Unoha (ウノハ), a brand geared towards women. The brand mainly sells its products online and does not use physical locations other than temporary pop-ups that appear around Japan. Apart from being a female focused clothing brand, Unoha has also pledged to use organic and environmentally friendly materials in its products. Unoha's first brand ambassador was Harumi Sato.

LionRock Capital Limited acquired a 100% interest in Haglöfs from Asics on December 18, 2023.

Relationship with Nike
Nike, Inc. (originally known as Blue Ribbon Sports) was founded to sell Onitsuka Tiger shoes in the US. When Phil Knight visited Japan in 1963, shortly after he graduated from Stanford University, he was impressed by Onitsuka Tiger shoes and immediately visited the Onitsuka Tiger office and asked to be their sales agent in the US. After a number of years the relationship crumbled and both companies sued each other, with Nike retaining the naming rights to several shoes.

Sponsorships
Asics sponsors a variety of sports associations, teams and individuals; sponsorships include World Athletics and the Los Angeles Marathon. The company announced on October 4, 2011, that it would be the new official kit manufacturer for the Australian Cricket Team, replacing German manufacturer Adidas.

Working conditions
In March 2017, employees assembling Asics products in Cambodia fainted due to thick smoke present in the factory where they were working. The company responded to this by saying that it, along with the factory in question, would "address specific measures, with a focus on workers’ awareness and health and safety training, as well as including an improved air ventilation system".

In March 2021, while several Western clothing brands expressed concern over allegations of forced Uyghur labor involved in Xinjiang cotton production, Asics also announced that the Australian Olympic Team uniform would not contain cotton sourced from Xinjiang.