History Early days Adidas was founded by Adolf "Adi" Dassler who made sports shoes in his mother's scullery or laundry room in Herzogenaurach, Germany after his return from Wold War 1. In July 1924, his older Rudolf joined business, which became Dassler Brothers Shoe Factory ( Gebrüder Dassler Schuhfabrik ) . The electricity supply in Herzogenaurach was unreliable, so the brothers sometimes had to use pedal power from a stationary bicycle to run their equipment. Dassler assisted on the development of spiked running shoes (spikes) for multiple athletic events. To enhance the quality of spiked athletic footwear, he transitioned from a pervious model of heavy spikes to utilising canvas and rubber. In 1936, Dassler persuaded U.S. sprinter Jesse Owens to use his hand made spikes at the 1936 Summer Olympics. Following Owens'four gold medals, the name and reputation of dassler shoes became known to the world's sportsmen and their trainers. Business was succ...