2024-09-17 21:58:06
Adidas is closing Runtastic’s locations in Austria. However, the app will continue to operate.
Adidas has announced the closure of Runtastic’s locations in Linz and Vienna. Around 200 employees were informed of their dismissal at a company meeting. This is reported by the “Oberösterreichische Nachrichten” among others.
First rumors about the closure had already surfaced last week, but there was no official statement from Adidas.
The Upper Austrian start-up Runtastic was founded in 2009 by Florian Gschwandtner, Christian Kaar, René Giretzlehner and Alfred Luger and quickly developed into a successful provider of sports apps. In 2013, the Berlin media group Axel Springer invested 22 million euros in the company. In 2015, the German sporting goods manufacturer Adidas bought all shares from the founders, Axel Springer and the co-shareholders for 220 million euros. However, the success fell short of expectations.
Tobias Seemann, Senior Vice President Global Digital & eCommerce at adidas, told t-online: “Bundling our digital competencies at a few locations is an important step to further develop our digital offering in a targeted manner, offer our customers the best possible digital experiences and at the same time focus more strongly on Adidas’ core competencies.”
We understand that this decision is a challenge for many of our employees and we want to offer comprehensive support. Runtatstic employees can apply to the Adidas locations in Herzogenaurach, Amsterdam or Zaragoza. The running app “adidas running” will continue to be operated from there.
Since being taken over by Adidas, Runtastic has undergone several changes. In 2018, Florian Gschwandtner resigned as managing director and was replaced by the American Scott Dunlop. In 2022, Adidas reduced Runtastic’s brand value by 16 million euros in its annual report. Most recently, Runtastic was removed from the company name and renamed “adidas running”. Last year, 70 of the original 250 employees were laid off.