Japanese sporting goods group Asics is thriving on the world stage, thanks to its running products and notably also to strong demand for its lifestyle collections. In 2024, Asics’s global revenue increased by 13% excluding foreign exchange effects, reaching a record-breaking ¥678.5 billion (€4.2 billion).

Asics’s operating profit also improved worldwide last year, growing by 76.9% to ¥100 billion (€626 million). Net profit soared, growing by 70.9% and reaching ¥63.8 billion (€399 million), compared to ¥35.2 billion in 2023.

Across all markets, the brand’s ‘sportstyle’ products, with their urban fashion vibe, were the most successful. The category’s revenue grew by 56.2% globally to ¥98.4 billion (€616 million), and more than doubled in North America. The Onitsuka Tiger brand was also in great shape, posting 53.1% growth. Revenue for performance products in the running category rose by a more modest 7.6%, while revenue for the core performance sports segment grew by 4.3%.

Asics, which was founded in 1949, posted record results in Europe too: revenue increased by 12.8% to ¥179.3 billion, equivalent to just over €1 billion (€1.1 billion more precisely). Operating profit in Europe was ¥25.2 billion (€157 million), up 78.2%, while the operating margin rose to 13.4%. 

Growth in Europe was driven by the performance segment, and especially by the ‘sportstyle’ category, whose revenue jumped by 39.9%. Asics is chiefly tapping demand for running-style sneakers with a 2000s feel, popular with young urban consumers, with the Gel Kayano 20 and 14 models the bestsellers.

Asics, whose online sales increased by 20.7% last year, recorded even stronger gains in other regions: its revenue grew by 34.2% on the Japanese domestic market, by 29.1% in South-east Asia, and by 22.1% in Greater China.

For 2025, Asics has forecast a further increase in revenue, whose growth is targeted at 17% to reach ¥780 billion (€4.9 billion), with an attendant net profit increase of 22.2%.