Brooks Global CMO Melanie Allen on Building Lasting Ties With China’s Runners

Brooks opened its first store in southwestern China at Taikoo Li Chengdu in August 2026.

The American running brand entered China in 2022 with a digital-first strategy. It was a late arrival in a competitive market, but sales grew quickly. Brooks reported a 16% increase in global revenue in 2025, with China sales up 245%. Sales in China rose another 136% year over year in the first quarter of 2026.

Melanie Allen, Brooks’s global chief marketing officer, was in Chengdu for the opening. Her visit followed an expansion of her responsibilities in March to include shaping and activating a global brand vision that connects more deeply across product, consumer experience, and regional execution. Spending time with runners and regional teams has become a priority as the business expands internationally.

In Chengdu, Melanie Allen spoke exclusively to Brandstar in her first media interview in China.

She attributes Brooks’s growth in China to the fit between its running expertise and a knowledgeable customer base. The century-old company has concentrated on performance running for more than two decades. That focus resonates with what Melanie Allen calls “a discerning customer who knows their product and knows great product.”

For Melanie Allen, the longer-term test is whether those customers return. A first purchase establishes a connection; repeat business offers a clearer measure of loyalty.

The discussion centered on how Brooks can build on that initial trust, from the shoes runners buy to the stores, training groups and races they return to. It also explored how insights from China are informing the brand’s product development and marketing worldwide.

Brandstar: China sales grew 245% in 2025 and another 136% year over year in the first quarter of 2026. What is driving that growth?

Melanie: We’re thrilled with the results and the response from Chinese runners and the running community.

Brooks has been focused on running for over 25 years. We’ve been in running a lot longer than that, but all of our resources and focus have been on creating the best performance gear. We’ve spent a lot of time understanding human movement and how to make a product that delivers a great run.

By the time we came to China, we had the right product. It’s a discerning customer who knows their product and knows great product. We’re seeing the Chinese running community really respond to that.

For me, performance is probably at the core of it. Then it’s about taking the time to understand the community and the runners here, and how we can be part of their world.

China offered Brooks a large running market with discerning customers. Runners were becoming more knowledgeable about training and equipment, raising the bar for brands competing for their business.

According to the Chinese Athletics Association’s 2025 China Marathon Blue Book, China hosted 594 marathon-related and road running events in 2025, with a total of 6,398,700 race participations. That race scene provides the backdrop to the product knowledge Melanie Allen describes: runners paying close attention to pace, weekly mileage and recovery, and choosing shoes for specific uses.

On social media, running shoes attract the kind of technical scrutiny more often associated with consumer electronics. Runners compare weight, midsole materials and carbon-fiber plates, then ask how those features translate to a long run, a faster workout or race day.

Reviews and in-store try-ons help runners assess those differences for themselves. As they learn which features matter to their training, they can make a more informed choice about where to spend.

For Brooks, that scrutiny offers a chance to compete on the expertise it has built over more than two decades. A knowledgeable customer can judge its shoes against a crowded field of alternatives.

Founded in 1914, Brooks made performance running its strategic focus in 2001.

Former CEO Jim Weber recounts that decision in his book Running with Purpose: concentrating on performance running helped restore the company to growth. In 2012, Brooks became a standalone subsidiary of Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway.

That focus has allowed Brooks to invest in biomechanics, cushioning and the demands of different training sessions. Its range reflects the variety within running, from everyday road miles to racing and technical trails.

Glycerin and Ghost are core daily trainers; the Hyperion range spans speed training and racing; Cascadia is designed for the trails. In the first quarter of 2026, Glycerin became Brooks’s largest footwear franchise by global revenue, with sales up 34% year over year. Hyperion Elite sales rose 114%, while trail footwear grew 59%.

The sales mix differs by market. Reuters reported in May 2025 that Ghost was Brooks’s bestselling shoe in the United States. In China, CEO Dan Sheridan said nearly 70% of sales came from Glycerin Max, a max-cushioned trainer that was then the brand’s second-most-expensive shoe.

Brooks has also made inroads among performance-oriented runners in China. According to the Joyrun Data Institute, 15.8% of sub-three-hour finishers at the 2025 Shanghai Marathon wore Brooks, placing it second overall and first among international brands in that group. The figure measures shoe choice among faster marathoners, not overall market share, but indicates a foothold with a demanding audience.

Brandstar: How do Chinese runners differ from those in the U.S. and Europe in how they research and buy shoes, connect with other runners and engage with brands?

Melanie: At the core, what runners need from their gear and how they move is generally the same. But we’ve learned that Chinese customers are much more discerning about products. Their product knowledge, their understanding of technology and their desire to know what it will do for them have improved our storytelling. They’ve improved how we communicate what our products do.

Then there is the digital connection. That physical-to-digital ecosystem moves fast. People engage in different ways, and that has given us a lot to learn from globally.

And I think the running community is special. There’s so much joy and love in what running means to people. As the community grows, more people experience it, and you can see that it’s infectious. It’s attracting more people, and they’re discovering it a little faster here than anywhere else we’re seeing around the world.

Four years after entering China, Brooks’s task is to build on the credibility of its shoes. That means being useful throughout a runner’s routine: at the fitting, during training, on race day and in recovery. Those repeated interactions give the brand more opportunities to earn the next purchase.

Running shoes are also becoming part of everyday wardrobes. Melanie Allen describes a blurring of performance and lifestyle as people wear them to commute, travel and socialize. All-day comfort is part of the appeal; so is the ability to signal that running is part of who they are.

For Melanie Allen, performance remains the foundation of that broader appeal. “Our first principle is that performance is our main focus. It will always be our main focus, and it gives us the gateway into being part of runners’ lives in other areas.”

The Adrenaline line shows how Brooks is bringing its running heritage into casual footwear. Introduced in 1999, it became known for support and cushioning. The Adrenaline GTS 4, originally released in 2002, and GTS 10, from 2009, have since returned as lifestyle models. The revived GTS 10 combines its mesh upper and layered overlays with modern DNA Tuned cushioning.

Everyday footwear broadens the occasions on which people wear Brooks. Stores and running programs serve a different purpose: helping them choose the right shoes, prepare for a race and keep running.

Melanie Allen sums up the approach in the phrase “where you run.” “We call it ‘where you run.’ We want to show up where you run.”

In Chengdu, that approach extended beyond the shop floor. For the store opening, Brooks set up a “Wind Lane” (风巷驿站) pop-up in Taikoo Li’s East Plaza, offering shoe trials, running services and community activities. Runners could use it as a meeting point before and after a run.

Brandstar: What role should a store play beyond selling shoes?

Melanie: It’s always helpful to see the bags go out, because you know that’s a run you’re going to give somebody. But beyond that, it’s about making sure they get the right gear and really great service.

We want to make sure people keep running. That’s how they can experience the most benefits. Physical retail helps us get them into the right product. They can try different things and figure out what’s going to work for them.

Then there are local communities: run hubs where people can come together, learn from each other, get coaching and train. So it’s much more than the product itself and sales.

Race partnerships extend that contact through training and competition. Brooks is the official footwear partner of the Great North Run, the world’s largest half-marathon. It also partners with races in Barcelona, Rome and Munich through title, presenting or technical sponsorships.

Brooks will be the presenting sponsor of the 2026 Nexperia (China) Shanghai 10K Elite Race, its first professional race sponsorship in China.

For most runners, race day follows months of preparation. Brooks’s marathon training camps in China give the brand a role in that build-up, drawing on the Hansons training method to tailor mileage, intensity and recovery to runners’ needs.

In 2024, Brooks introduced “Let’s Run There” as its global brand platform, succeeding the long-running “Run Happy.” Melanie Allen sees continuity in its emphasis on joy and the belief that “one run helps you have a better day.” The new platform adds an invitation: “Wherever you want to go, Brooks is going to be there to help you get there.”

She puts particular weight on “Let’s”: the shared effort of run clubs and communities helping people reach their goals. “There” might be a personal ambition or simply a place someone runs each day. As Melanie Allen puts it, “We can give you great gear, but the running communities are very local.”

Brandstar: How does Brooks build lasting relationships with running communities in the U.S., and what can the China business learn from that experience?

Melanie: It’s pretty similar to here, except that we don’t have retail stores in the U.S. We have a lot of local partners. Our local marketers work with retailers to host runs and community events. In China, we have our own stores, so we’re able to do that here. But the principle is the same: we’re getting out there and running with the community.

The other part is sponsorships and races. Those are big moments for runners, including all the training that leads up to them. That’s something the China team has built. They show up at races, but they’re also building incredible training camps and programs. They’ve taken the Hansons training program, which we started in the U.S., and applied it here, so we can help more runners achieve a goal or a really great marathon time.

It’s about the months leading up to that marathon, then showing up with them and celebrating at the end.

Asked about Brooks’s challenges in China, Melanie Allen returned to one word: speed.

“It’s keeping up with the speed—not only in speed products, but also the speed of the market.” For Brooks, that means responding both to a fast-moving business environment and to runners’ demand for faster shoes.

Competition and the close connection between online and physical retail make China a fast-moving market. Working there gives the local team a direct view of product feedback and changing shopping habits. Sharing those observations with global colleagues can shorten the time between identifying a need and responding to it.

Chinese runners’ detailed questions about shoe technology are one example. Melanie Allen says that level of interest “has improved our storytelling. It’s improved how we communicate what our products do.” It has encouraged Brooks to explain more clearly how its technology translates into performance.

The week before the interview, Brooks’s global consumer-insights team, the Run-Sights Lab, had visited China to speak with runners. The business also shares feedback from social and digital channels, alongside research on brand awareness, consideration and purchase intent, with its global teams.

Brooks keeps its emphasis on performance and runners’ needs consistent worldwide, while local teams choose the stories, imagery, channels and events that make sense for their markets. The China team introduces global products to local runners and brings their feedback into the wider business. Melanie Allen calls it “a two-way street.”

Product feedback is particularly valuable in racing. Melanie Allen says front-of-the-pack runners are an important audience in Asia, especially China. Their needs are already informing Brooks’s speed-focused footwear and the way it explains those products.

The Hyperion range is growing quickly: first-quarter sales rose 32% year over year, including a 114% increase for Hyperion Elite and 64% for Hyperion Max. In its second-half lineup, Brooks positions Hyperion Max 4 for speed training and Hyperion Elite 6 for racing, giving each model a distinct role in a runner’s shoe rotation.

The influence extends to athlete coverage.

For years, the China team had asked for more stories about Josh Kerr and other elite runners, prompting the global team to develop more athlete content. When Josh Kerr broke the 27-year-old men’s mile world record in London in July 2026, colleagues from China were there to help document the event.

That involvement gives the China team a voice in both what Brooks develops and how it presents the brand to runners elsewhere.

Asked how she wants the team to shape Brooks globally, Melanie Allen was direct: “They’re already doing it.”

Brandstar: How does the China team influence Brooks’s global decisions?

Melanie: China has long played a key role in shaping Brooks globally. The team has its finger on the pulse of our market, which is really important. They’re seeing things at a faster rate, and I think they’re seeing performance and innovation in ways that other markets may not be.

We spend a lot of time together and talk a lot. We want to make sure that information reaches our global teams and can be shared more widely. That creates a faster feedback loop for what they’re hearing and the insights they’re gathering.

A good example is speed and front-of-the-pack runners. That is so important in Asia and in China, and there are nuances and insights we might not get in other markets. That has already fed into our speed products and how we talk about them.

We just had an incredible moment when one of our athletes, Josh Kerr, broke the world record in the mile. For years, our China team had been saying, “We want more stories about Josh. We want to hear more about him and our athletes.” They’ve really pushed us to tell those stories better and create more content around our athletes.

Our China team shows up all around the world. If our athletes are having a big race, we’re all there. The team was with me in London when Josh broke that world record. I think that shows how the connection between all of us is pushing us to a better place.

Brooks’s challenge is to give runners more reasons to choose the brand while keeping its commitment to running clear.

Daily trainers, racing shoes and trail models address different needs within the sport. Stores, training camps and race partnerships give Brooks further opportunities to support runners and demonstrate the value of that expertise.

China is helping the brand refine that approach. Runners research shoes online, try them in stores and discuss their experiences through training groups and races. Those conversations give the local team specific feedback on products, technical explanations and athlete coverage to take back to global colleagues.

For Brooks, China is becoming a source of ideas as well as sales. The local team is already helping shape the products and stories the brand brings to runners worldwide.