Puma said that sales of World Cup boots and "national team shirts as well as new Arsenal jerseys beat its expectations as it reported second-quarter earnings that fell less than feared and reiterated its outlook," according to Emma Thomasson of REUTERS. Puma is "trying to restore its reputation for sports performance gear after a foray into fashion has seen it slip further behind" Nike and adidas. Puma said on Tuesday that earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) fell 60% to $16.92M, while net profit was down 76% percent to €4.2M ($5.6M), above "average analyst forecasts" for €10.4M ($13.9M) and €3.6M ($4.8M), respectively. As it "refocuses on sport, Puma will launch its biggest marketing campaign to date on Aug. 7 set to run until the 2016 Olympics, showcasing athletes" including sprinter Usain Bolt, footballer Mario Balotelli and golfer Rickie Fowler (REUTERS, 7/29). BLOOMBERG's Aaron Ricadela reported Puma CEO Björn Gulden is seeing "strong demand for the company’s bright pink-and-blue" EvoPower and EvoSpeed cleats that some players wore at this year’s World Cup. Gulden is "also spending more on marketing for the back-to-school buying season, promoting the company's 'Forever Faster' ad campaign and signing sponsorship deals, which is dragging on profits." Gulden: "We know that the repositioning of Puma will and the turnaround of the business will take time" (BLOOMBERG, 7/29). MARKETING WEEK's Sebastian Joseph wrote popularity for the Italian, Chilean and African teams led to "increased sales for the Puma-produced kits." Apparel sales, which "include football shirts and account for a more than a third of the company's total business," jumped 6.2% to €241M ($323M) in the three months to June. Gulden: "I was very happy with Puma's visibility during the World Cup in Brazil. Feedback on both our dual-colored Tricks football boots and our national team jerseys with ACTV technology has been great. The sell-through of these products has been excellent and exceeded our expectations" (MARKETING WEEK, 7/29).
