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How Puma Became Fashionable

I strongly believe in differentiation by design. Differentiation starts with a strong and forward thinking management or executive team that recognizes the need to elevate design activities from a tactical and operational focus to a level of strategic significance. The difference being that design effectively becomes a long term concern rather than an ad hoc, or at best, short term necessity.

Puma

Ten years ago German sportswear company Puma was practically non existent with increasing financial difficulties and a lurking bankruptcy. Except for a few German hardcore fans nobody was interested in Puma, the masses would rather wear Nike or Adidas. Back in those days Puma was not cool and certainly not fashionable. After some hard-hitting financial measures and a thorough functional re-organisation the company got somewhat back on track. In 1998 executives decided that it was time for a systematic re-branding of Puma and a change of strategy that would later set an example in the industry.

From drab to fab

By shifting their brand proposition Puma broadened their target market from solely sport to lifestyle and even fashion. Yes, a strategy that has now been copied and applied by the likes of Nike, Adidas, Reebok and others. Not without reason mind you, as this has become an extremely lucrative business. So far Puma single handedly redefined the term sneaker — at least in Europe — and definitively set a new trend that would eventually be followed by fashion brands such as Gucci, Dolce & Gabanna, DKNY, Prada and many more top players in the ultra hip and trendy fashion industry. But what role did design play in this spectacular turn-around?

Puma hired rock star
designers Philippe Starck
and Jil Sander.

Puma hired rock star designers Philippe Starck and Jil Sander. They also dress the national football (soccer for people who do not get it) team of Italy (bad luck they performed the way they did at Euro2004, but not essential.) These efforts are powered by an intelligent design strategy. Fashion is dictated by what looks hot and cool. Nobody cares if your shoes make you run faster, hell no, the objective is to make you look like a million bucks and make you feel on top of the world, and preferably with you, a million others. Puma now participates in fashion shows in Milan. Yet, they do not aim to take the fashion industry by storm — what matters most for Puma is design and constant innovation.

Puma was blessed with CEO Jochen Zeits who understands the power of design, its strength to differentiate and how it helped a company make its share price soar from €13 to €140 in no more than 3 years, but more importantly make its branded sales exceed €1 billion. Do not tell me design does not matter — it does, more now than ever and not only in the high technology field.

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Copyright © 2004 Didier Hilhorst. All Rights Reserved.

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