BrandWikiReturn

On (company)

WorldBrand briefing

AI supplement

Original synthesis to sit alongside the encyclopedia article below. Not part of Wikipedia; verify facts on Wikipedia when precision matters.

On Holding AG, branded as On, is a Swiss sportswear manufacturer headquartered near Zurich, best known for its high-performance running shoes featuring proprietary CloudTec cushioning technology. Founded by former pro triathlete Olivier Bernhard and partners, it has grown into a globally recognized premium athletic brand.

Key moments

  • 2010Founded in Zurich, Switzerland by Olivier Bernhard, David Allemann, and Caspar Coppetti
  • 2012Launched its first running shoe, the Cloudracer
  • 2019Tennis star Roger Federer invested $50 million for a 3% stake, boosting global brand visibility
  • 2021Listed on the New York Stock Exchange under ticker ONON, raising ~$746 million in its IPO

On competes in the global athletic footwear and apparel market, with key competitors including:

  1. Nike Inc.: The industry leader with a far broader product portfolio and larger marketing reach
  2. Adidas AG: A major rival with similar premium pricing and widespread retail distribution
  3. Hoka One One: A direct competitor in the high-performance running shoe segment, known for maximalist cushioning
  4. Brooks Sports: A specialty running shoe brand with strong loyalty among serious runners
  5. Saucony: Another established running footwear brand with a long history in the sport

On's key competitive advantages include its unique CloudTec cushioning design, strong ties to elite running communities via its On Athletics Club, and premium positioning aligned with luxury sportswear trends. The brand has seen rapid growth in recent years, particularly in the DTC and wholesale running shoe channels.

  • Unique CloudTec cushioning technology as a product differentiator
  • Strong partnerships with elite athletes and celebrities including Roger Federer and Zendaya
  • Rapid international expansion across 80+ countries
  • Strong growth in direct-to-consumer sales channels

On (On Holding AG) is a Swiss premium athletic brand that has built significant brand strength in the global running footwear market, anchored by its proprietary CloudTec cushioning technology that delivers a unique, differentiated consumer experience. The brand’s focus on serving the high-performance running community, paired with its alignment with growing consumer demand for premium luxury sportswear, has allowed it to capture growing market share away from both legacy mass-market brands and long-standing specialty running labels. Its close ties to elite athletes through initiatives like the On Athletics Club have fostered strong brand authenticity, a key asset in the performance athletic space.

Unlike large diversified competitors such as Nike and Adidas that offer broad product portfolios across all sports categories, On has chosen to focus its brand identity tightly around running, which has helped it stand out in a crowded market. The company’s successful transition from a small startup founded by a former triathlete to a publicly traded global brand demonstrates the strength of its brand positioning and its ability to scale while retaining its core identity. It continues to expand into adjacent categories including athletic apparel and accessories, extending its brand reach while maintaining its premium positioning.

Brand leadership

Score: 72/100

On holds a leading position in the premium high-performance running shoe segment, outperforming most specialty peers in growth rate while maintaining a clear differentiated value proposition through its proprietary technology. While it trails legacy industry giants like Nike and Adidas in overall athletic market share, its strong brand recognition among core running consumers gives it significant influence over product trends in the global running category.

Consumer interaction

Score: 78/100

The brand maintains deep, ongoing engagement with its core running community through elite athlete partnerships, grassroots running events, and its dedicated On Athletics Club program. Its direct-to-consumer sales channels enable two-way interaction with customers, allowing the brand to quickly incorporate feedback into product development and build higher levels of loyalty among its core user base compared to many mass-market athletic brands.

Growth momentum

Score: 85/100

On has consistently delivered strong double-digit revenue growth since its founding, outpacing the overall growth rate of the global athletic footwear market. Its expansion into apparel and accessories, paired with increasing penetration in key North American and Asian markets, has sustained robust growth momentum as the brand scales from a niche startup to a mid-sized global player.

Brand stability

Score: 68/100

As a publicly traded company with a consistent brand identity and loyal core customer base, On has achieved solid financial and brand stability in its core markets. However, it is smaller and less diversified than larger legacy competitors, making it slightly more exposed to market downturns, and its long-term brand stability is still maturing as it expands into new categories and regions.

Brand age

Score: 60/100

Founded in 2010, On is a relatively young brand compared to most competing running and athletic footwear brands, many of which have decades or even centuries of brand heritage. Its youth has allowed it to adopt modern digital marketing and direct-to-consumer strategies from inception, but it lacks the multi-generational brand recognition that some established competitors leverage.

Industry profile

Score: 75/100

On holds a strong positive industry profile, widely recognized within the athletic footwear sector for its innovative CloudTec technology that has influenced running shoe design across the industry. It is respected for its focused niche positioning and rapid growth, but it has not yet achieved the same level of mainstream cross-industry recognition as the largest global athletic brands.

Global market reach

Score: 70/100

On currently distributes its products in over 50 countries around the world, with well-established market presence in Europe and North America, and growing operations in the Asia-Pacific region. While it has achieved meaningful global scale, its penetration in most emerging markets remains limited compared to large multinational legacy competitors.

AI can support reasoning around a brand’s value based on its market position, growth trajectory, and competitive performance, but any resulting brand value figures are illustrative only. For a fully audited, authoritative assessment of On (company)'s brand value, please contact the World Brand Lab.

On Holding AG is a Swiss athletic shoe and performance sportswear company that designs and markets sports clothing and running shoes.[2]

In 2019, On products were sold in 6,000 retailers in 55 countries and the company held 40% of the running shoe market in Switzerland and 10% in Germany.[3] The United States is its biggest single market, where it accounts for 6.6% of the performance running shoe category.[4] Globally, as of 2024, On is estimated to have 2% of the athletic footwear market.[5] As of 2025, On is on its way to a $20 billion market cap, continually growing year-over-year.[6]

History

On was first incorporated as a sporting goods company in 2010. The company was founded by former Swiss Ironman champion Olivier Bernhard with David Allemann and Caspar Coppetti. In 2012, On released the Cloudracer, a performance shoe favoured by Swiss professional triathlete Nicola Spirig.[7] The company claims a proprietary cushioning technology called CloudTec in its shoes.[8]

CloudTec began with Bernhard experimenting with a garden hose, exploring how that shape could offer a brand new type of cushioning. Bernhard, who was a Nike athlete at the time, presented his prototype to Nike but had it rejected. The "clouds" underneath all On shoes are described by the manufacturer as offering cushioning as the foot lands on the floor, before locking together to create a solid foundation for pushing off on the next step.[9]

Within 2 years after its initial public offering (IPO), On had doubled its revenue to nearly $2 billion.[10]

Cloudboom

The Cloudboom Strike LS is a performance running shoe launched for the 2024 Olympic Games. It uses an upper construction method in which a single, continuous filament of synthetic material is robotically deposited to create a lightweight and form-fitting upper. Weighing only 6 oz, the shoe is comparable in weight to the Nike ZoomX Streakfly.

This upper construction reduces the shoe's required components from 150-200 to seven. The shoe is also promoted for its reduced environmental impact through minimized waste and potential for on-demand manufacturing.[11]

Shareholders

Swiss Tennis professional Roger Federer became a shareholder in On AG in November 2019. The company released a limited edition lifestyle shoe named “The Roger” in July 2020.[12] Based on sales growth the company was reported to be exploring IPO options for the latter half of 2021.[8][13] In September 2021, the company's IPO raised approximately $746 million.[14]

Since 2021, On is a listed stock on the NYSE.[15]

Management

From January 2021 to March 2025, Marc Maurer[16] and Martin Hoffmann[17] jointly served as Co-CEOs until April 2025 when Hoffmann assumed the sole CEO role.[18] Martin Hoffmann held the role of Chief Financial Officer since joining the company in 2013.[19] The company's founders remain actively involved: David Allemann and Caspar Coppetti serve as Executive Co-Chairmen. Olivier Bernhard focuses on product and innovation. In 2024, On reported sales of CHF 2.32 billion, marking a 29.4% increase compared to the previous year. The company's profit rose by 204.5% to CHF 242.3 million during the same period.[20]

Operations

On also founded and sponsors the professional running group, On Athletics Club, coached by Dathan Ritzenhein with a roster that contains multiple Olympic finalists.[21] The company also built bobsleigh shoes that were used in the 2022 Winter Olympics.[22]

Currently, David Kilgore, an American professional runner and record holder, competes and works for On Running.[23][24]

On March 31, 2022, On launched the Cloudmonster. It deviates from the company's previous designs by having a larger sole. Jacob Gallagher of The Wall Street Journal described it as "a maximalist sneaker" and claimed that this design is primarily associated with Hoka, and called Hoka "one of On's main competitors in the specialized running market".[25]

In March 2023, On announced its sponsorship of number one women's tennis player Iga Świątek[26] and men's tennis players Ben Shelton and João Fonseca.[27] In June 2024 On signed a new partnership with the young Italian man tennis player Flavio Cobolli.

The production of On shoes has been moved from China to Indonesia and Vietnam.[28]

In addition to On Athletics Club, On sponsors a number of other track, road, and trail runners, as well as triathletes and tennis players.[29]

See also

External links

References

  1. On Holding AG 2024 Annual Report (Form 20-F) U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, 2025-03-04^
  2. On Holding AG (ONON): History, Ownership, Mission, How It Works & Makes Money^
  3. Jessica Plüss. The making of a Swiss footwear multinationaL retrieved 9 June 2021^
  4. Kurt Badenhausen. Roger Federer Launches First Lifestyle Sneaker With Swiss Running Brand On Forbes, 6 July 2020, retrieved 9 June 2021^
  5. The Swiss Sneaker Brand Outrunning Nike and Adidas Bloomberg.com, 2025-01-15, retrieved 2025-01-16^
  6. Ryan Hogg. Swiss running brand On became $3 billion richer in the last week. It’s coming for Nike and Adidas next Fortune, retrieved 2026-03-13^
  7. Michael Charboneau. The Best On Running Shoes Runner’s World, retrieved 9 June 2021^
  8. Albertina Torsoli. Federer-Backed Shoemaker Said to Eye IPO at $5 Billion Valuation 30 April 2021, retrieved 9 June 2021^
  9. What the Tech? On's CloudTec Reaches New Heights on the CloudStratus 2 HYPEBEAST, 2021-08-20, retrieved 2022-05-30^
  10. Forbes, Swiss Athletic Brand On Running Reaches Nearly $2 Billion In Revenue Two Years After IPO Clara Ludmir, October 6, 2023^
  11. Vanessa Friedman. Is This the Craziest Sneaker You Have Ever Seen? The New York Times, 2024-07-15, retrieved 2024-07-19^
  12. Emily Farra. I Hope It's a Shoe You Can Wear Every Day'—Roger Federer Debuts His First Sneaker With Swiss Label On Vogue, 6 July 2020, retrieved 9 June 2021^
  13. Arno Schutze. Federer-backed shoe firm ON Running targets autumn IPO -sources Reuters, 30 April 2021, retrieved 9 June 2021^
  14. Crystal Tse. On Running Shoemaker's IPO Beats Target to Raise $746 Million www.bloomberg.com, September 14, 2021, retrieved 2021-12-03^
  15. Börsengang von On: Mehr als eine halbe Milliarde für jeden Gründer Handelszeitung, retrieved 2025-04-03^
  16. On - Governance - Board of Directors - Person Details investors.on-running.com, retrieved 2025-03-16^
  17. On - Governance - Board of Directors - Person Details investors.on-running.com, retrieved 2025-03-16^
  18. On Announces Leadership Evolution investors.on-running.com, retrieved 2025-04-02^
  19. On - Governance investors.on-running.com, retrieved 2025-03-16^
  20. On Running Triples Net Profit in 2024 Exceeding $2.6 Billion USD in Sales Hypebeast, 2025-03-04, retrieved 2025-03-16^
  21. On Gets Into Pro Running In Big Way - Forms Group Featuring Joe Klecker, Dathan Ritzenhein To Coach LetsRun.com, 2020-08-03, retrieved 2021-12-03^
  22. Dave Sheinin. Top gear Washington Post, retrieved 2022-03-30^
  23. David Kilgore www.on-running.com, retrieved 2022-01-25^
  24. How On Is Taking the Running World by Storm Outside Online, 2021-10-06, retrieved 2022-01-25^
  25. Jacob Gallagher. How On's Running Sneakers Won Over Tech Bros and High Fashion Alike Wall Street Journal, 2022-03-30, retrieved 2022-03-30^
  26. Tennis fans react to big news about Iga Swiatek and Roger Federer Yahoo Sports, 2023-03-21, retrieved 2024-02-14^
  27. Tim Newcomb. On Signs Iga Swiatek And Ben Shelton To Head-To-Toe Tennis Deals Forbes, 20 March 2023, retrieved 14 February 2024^
  28. Alessia Pagani. ON Laufschuhe: Aufschwung durch Investor Roger Federer St. Galler Tagblatt, 2020-02-25, retrieved 2025-03-27^
  29. Athletes On Shop, retrieved 2026-01-20^