Ms Kim set to work. The first phase, which began imme- diately after the acquisition, was the ‘cleaning up’ stage. “Since the brand collapsed in 1998 it had more or less had a secondary position in some markets. So we cleaned up the market and we closed about 150 wholesale accounts,” she says with a laugh that once again glosses over just how tough such decisions are. “It cost us US$30 million in retail value but I did it. I swallowed it.”
But a brand cannot be repositioned just by re-asserting distribution control. The product itself, the image and the marketing all badly needed an injection of creativity and inspiration.
In May 2005 that inspiration duly arrived in form of Michael Mikalsky, at the time Global Creative Director for Adidas. The ebullient Mikalsky was credited with driving the sports brand’s impressive resurgence and plunge into the fashion world by arranging collabora- tions with the likes of Yohji Yamamoto and Stella McCartney.
Mikalsky subsequently left Adidas to focus on MCM (and now his own label, which is being launched soon). His collaboration with MCM was a defining moment for the brand, Ms Kim says. She told the International Her- ald Tribune recently: “He’s one of the most powerful designers I’ve met. He’s a 21st century designer. He understands the market, he’s very innovative and very open-minded for the younger generation.”