Chinese sports giant Anta was founded in 1991 with 600 pairs of shoes. Today, with over 12,000 stores in China and 460 internationally, Anta has bought Fila, bought Amer Sports (which contains Arc'teryx, Salomon and Wilson), and in February 2026 opened its first store in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles. Nike has around 1,000 stores globally. Anta plans 1,000 new ones in Southeast Asia alone. The numbers are the point.

The strategy is intelligent: rather than entering the Western market with a brand labelled "made in China," Anta bought brands Western consumers already love. Arc'teryx is favored by hikers, Salomon by runners, Wilson by tennis players. Anta simply owns them - quietly, without advertising the connection. Some Arc'teryx buyers do not know they are paying a Chinese company.

The timing is not accidental. Nike and Adidas are under pressure - tariffs are increasing their costs, sales in some markets are stagnating. While they battle supply chains, Anta is buying their competitors. The question is not whether Anta will be a global player - it already is. The question is how quickly Nike and Adidas will realize that the competition has already arrived in Beverly Hills.

In the Balkans we know the model: someone who used to make things for others starts making for themselves. Sometimes that is called development. Sometimes it changes an entire industry.