adidas Group: Portfolio Approach to Internal Funding for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy

adidas Group is a multinational sports and clothing manufacturer and retailer with over 2,700 retail locations and 22 million square feet of corporate office space. The company’s strong environmental commitments have driven adidas to find creative solutions to reducing energy needs. It created a greenENERGY Fund in 2012 as an internal venture capital fund that provides financing, expertise, project management, and monitoring and verification to facilitate investments in energy efficiency and renewable energy projects -- while delivering a net profit. By creating a dedicated internal fund, the adidas Group is able to overcome common internal financing hurdles, such as internal competition for capital, short payback horizons, and a lack of time or budget on the part of facility managers. To view the full PDF version of this implementation model, click here.