Second Only To Nike Adidas, This Sports Brand Is Strong.

Speaking of sports brand, American Nike and German Adidas are two mountains that can not be turned around. In addition, Germany has a strong brand, Puma (PUMA). What you may not know is that the founders of Puma and Adidas are born brothers, and the two brands are "killing each other" for decades.
Public information shows that Puma was born in the 40s of last century, and its products involve running, football, golf and even racing. From soccer star Bailey and Maradona to sprinter Boulter, and then to the famous singer Rihanna, they are their spokesmen.
Forbes released the list of the most valuable sports brands in the world in 2019, showing that Puma ranked first in the list and ranked sixth in the brand value of 4 billion US dollars (28 billion yuan). If you only look at sports brand, it is the third largest brand in the world after Nike and Adidas.
Back in the 20s of last century, Rudolf Darth and Adolf Darth set up the "Darth brothers shoe factory" in the German town of heto, which specializes in producing all kinds of sports shoes. Because the shoes produced are of good quality, they are very popular. Later, when the Olympic Games were held in Berlin, the brothers decided to take the initiative to persuade the American athlete Jesse Owens to wear the shoes they made.
Surprisingly, Owens won four gold medals in that Olympic Games and broke 2 World Records and 5 Olympic records. This is virtually a free publicity campaign for the brand, and the shoe factory of the Darth brothers has also become an industry leader.
But at the end of 40s, the brothers decided to go their separate ways because of their disagreement. Brother Adolf founded Adidas, and brother Rudolf founded Puma. The two major brands across the river are mainly sporting goods, and have become competitors since then.
Although Adidas is more famous now, Puma was obviously better at the beginning of its founding. Shortly after its separation, it launched the world's first pair of football shoes with detachable spikes, winning the praise of athletes. Later, Rudolf was very prospective in signing the sponsorship of the Brazil men's football team. With the team winning the world cup at three degrees, the exposure rate of the brand has reached its peak. At the end of the 90s, Puma also sponsored the movie shaolin soccer and gained a lot of fans' attention in China.
However, at a time when the situation is great, Puma has made a decision that puzzles the market -- abandoning the field of football transformation racing, which has led to a sharp fall in brand awareness. In contrast, Nike and Adidas not only active in the football market, but also actively enter the field of basketball.
At the same time, Puma's own innovation capability is lagging behind. Nike's AJ series provides cushioning and cushioning, and Adi shoes also have cushioning technology. With the increase and decrease, the gap between products is rapidly pulled away, and consumers' choice is not difficult.
After realizing the problem, Puma actively researched and developed product technology and increased its investment in basketball, football and other sports fields. In addition, the layout of the leisure and fashion industry is increased. Five years ago, the American singer Rihanna was hired as the creative director and global ambassador of the company, which promoted the popularity of the brand. The first product "muffin shoes" released after the cooperation between the two sides was sold out quickly within three hours. Those who tasted the sweetness decided to further seek the endorsement of entertainment stars, including Liu Haoran, Liu Wen and Li Xian, so as to open up the Chinese market.
With the strategy of sports + fashion entertainment, Puma played a beautiful battle in 2019. The third quarter was the best achievement in history, and global sales increased by 17% to 1 billion 478 million euros (about 11 billion 500 million yuan). Insiders pointed out that the key to Puma's rebirth is to upgrade its brand image into a sports brand that is fashionable. Like Lining and Anta in China, they are also beneficiaries of this trend. But there is still a long way to go for Puma, a strong return, to shake Nike and ADI's position.