Asics EMEA revenues rise, key divisions leap ahead

Asics EMEA, the regional division of the Japanese sports giant, has reported its 2023 financial results with its “highest-ever revenue in the region”.

It said revenues increased to €920 million excluding Onitsuka Tiger in 2023 with an operating income margin of 9.1%. But it didn’t give a comparison figure for 2022.

The company did say that Asics remained the “number-one premium performance running brand in Europe” during the year. That claim is based on full-year 2023 Circana Consumer panel data for items above and equal to €90 in five key markets (the UK, France, Germany, Italy and Spain).

And in its SportStyle category, it saw revenues rising 32% year on year. Meanwhile in the Core Performance Sports category (focused on tennis and indoor sports), revenues increased by 23% with the category exceeding €100 million in revenue for the first time in the region.

It also continued to see e-tail growth with a 22% revenue uplift.

Regional CEO Carsten Unbehaun highlighted the strength of the performance “despite very challenging market conditions” and added that the company “took major steps to significantly improve our distribution, which will benefit our brand and our partners in the future. Building strong partnerships is integral to our long-term growth strategy and I am confident that the steps we have taken this year will put us in a stronger position to accelerate future growth”.

He said industry-wide supply chain issues continue, but he’s “optimistic”. The company “controlled its inventory in 2023, meaning we start the year at a very healthy inventory level. We continue to see strong demand for our brand across all categories, markets and channels. I am keen to see our plans come to life in 2024 as we support more people to achieve a Sound Mind in a Sound Body”.