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HERZOGENAURACH, Germany — Sporting-goods maker Adidas AG is venturing further into lifestyle products as it teams up with Zound Industries International AB to sell headphones.
Closely held Zound of Stockholm is developing two lines of headphones that will be sold under the Adidas brand from next year, including one for sports, the company said in a statement. Zound said it will design, develop, manufacture and distribute the product in close collaboration with Adidas.
The agreement underscores an effort by Adidas, known for its three-stripe sports gear, to expand further away from its roots. The German company is becoming an unexpected competitor to Apple Inc., which in 2014 paid $3 billion to acquire the popular Beats line of headphones founded by the rapper known as Dr. Dre.
Zound, which generated sales of 1.04 billion Swedish kronor ($130 million) in 2016, sells other sports headphones under its own “Urbanears” line. The companies didn’t disclose the financial terms of their agreement.
By Richard Weiss; editors: Eric Pfanner, Marthe Fourcade and John J. Edwards III.