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In three years, India will be among top five global markets for Puma

By Meenakshi Kumar

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Retail

German sports lifestyle brand Puma looks to India among the top five markets in three years. Puma CEO Bjorn Gulden, had said recently ‘athleisure’ trend of combining sportswear with street style was working well in Asia’s third-largest economy. In 2016, India was the eight-largest market for Puma and the brand expects India to be among the top five by 2020.

India clocks in positive growth

Puma India clocked in around Rs 921-crores in revenue last year, making it the largest sports lifestyle brand in India. This is surely pushing India ahead of markets like Germany and France to climb into the top-five markets in the near future. US, China, Japan and Korea are among the brand’s big markets based on sales. Gulden says the brand would push athleisure to ‘generation hustle’ in India too, taking a cue from the success the concept has received internationally. He focused on the fact that Puma is primarily a sports company and would continue to invest in sports innovation and technology. But today, 80 per cent of sports shoes are used for everyday use, so stylish and well-looking products are a must because he believes in staying relevant to the youthful consumer, and to do that brands would have to move at the speed of culture and quickly adapt to cultural changes.

Star power to the fore

Rihanna, Usain Bolt and Kylie Jenner are among the stars that the brand has roped in as ambassadors for a social media-friendly strategy. Virat Kohli is the ambassador for Puma in India. Talking of brand association, Gulden highlighted the most influential people to generation hustle are their friends and connections — and, in some cases, the athletes, musicians, entrepreneurs and celebrities they admire. Therefore, the company’s aim is to partner with those influential customers and the people they admire to tell the brand’s stories.

Retail plans

Along with the franchisee route, Puma has started operating its standalone stores looking at the growing demand. The company owns and operates 60 out of the total 350 exclusive brand stores in the country. The company has also built its online presence through an e-commerce portal as well as selling on leading e-tailers like Flipkart and Amazon, among others. For them, having a combination of own brand stores and working with franchise partners enables a healthy balance in business. Gulden says India’s e-commerce potential, about 730 million internet users who will buy products online by 2020, would give them the additional opportunity to launch exclusive products and limited editions, besides using it as a platform to connect with its consumers in a unique and engaging manner.

Puma