Page 38 - Annonce 5

Two Enemy Brothers,

Two Rival Companies

Adolf (Adi) and Rudolf (Rudi) Dassler are two brothers who were 13 of the employees and followed in his brother’s footsteps and
born and raised in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, Germany. Following named his company Ruda, but later changed the name to Puma.
in their father’s footsteps, they founded Gebrüder Dassler
Schuhfabrik (Dassler Brothers Shoe Factory) in their mother’s The city was now divided in two. In the city, which was divided
laundry in 1924. At first, because they did not have electricity, into those on the Adidas side and those on the Puma side, the
they cut the skins with the energy they produced from the bicycle children in primary school chose their friends according to their
and made production. Their aim was to produce light, thin and shoes. Markets and restaurants were divided according to two
high-quality shoes especially for athletes engaged in athletics. For sides, and those who went to one did not go to the other. Dating
this, Adolf was responsible for producing the shoes, while Rudolf and marriage between employees of the two companies were
was responsible for selling these shoes. also prohibited. In fact, this separation had reached such a level
that Herzogenaurach was nicknamed the “City of the Bowed
With the rise of Adolf Hitler in Germany and the improvements he Neck” because people looked at their shoes before speaking to
brought to the economy, the two brothers became members of each other.
the National Socialist German Workers Party (Nazi Party) in 1933.
The two brothers gave Jesse Owens running shoes for the 1936 While Rudolf’s sales team and product delivery were better than
Berlin Olympics. With Owens winning 4 gold medals in these Adolf’s, Adolf’s technical knowledge and relationship with athletes

Olympics, they suddenly became famous shoe manufacturers. were better. This put Adolf one step ahead of the race and Adidas
However, this fame caused jealousy among the brothers, as the got to a better level than Puma. The resentment between the
spouses did not get along with each other. brothers never ceased. Both of the brothers who died 4 years
apart were buried in the farthest corners of the same cemetery.
At the beginning of World War II, the relations between the two The 61-year animosity between Adidas and Puma ended with
brothers began to fall apart. As World War II continued, both the football match organized by Fifa on September 21, the World
brothers continued to be devoted to the Nazi Party. Adolf was Peace Day in 2009, in which the CEOs and employees of both
building combat boots for the Wehrmacht, the armed force of companies took part. The headquarters of the two companies are
the Nazi Party, while Rudolf, a staunch Nazi supporter, enlisted. still located in Herzogenaurach.
Rudolf, who later deserted the army and was arrested, thought
that his brother was the cause of this, and they broke up. Two enemy brothers, two rival companies Puma and Adidas.

Towards the end of the war, the Nazi Party seized the factory and Başak Uçkesen
began to manufacture boots for soldiers there. After this event,
Adolf improved his relations with the USA and started to keep on
good terms with the allies. Then Rudolf was arrested for working
for the Nazi Party’s Secret Police. It was later revealed that the
person who reported it was his brother Adolf. After this incident,
the two brothers were completely separated.

After the end of World War II, the two brothers continued their
work even though they were completely separated from each
other. By 1948, Adolf decided to continue the business separately.
Despite Rudolf’s objections and saying that two shoe factories
would be too many in a small city, Adolf did not back down from
his decision and the two brothers separated. They separated
on both sides of the river and as per the agreement they made,
they decided not to use the Dassler name in their products and
companies. Adolf took 40 of the employees and founded Adidas,
a mix of his first and last name. Rudolf, on the other hand, took
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