Puma yesterday named singer Rihanna its new Women’s Creative Dir in a multiyear deal that will have her "tackle Puma's fitness and training line," according to Paulina Szmydke of WOMEN'S WEAR DAILY. Rihanna said, “I’m very excited about this. Whether it’s apparel or shoes or accessories, I want to modernize it by highlighting the classics and going from things that make Puma Puma -- give it a youthfulness, make it hip, basically (make it) Rihanna.” She vowed “to come up with cool things that don’t even belong in Puma.” Rihanna: “It could even be down to suspenders. We can experiment and take risks, that’s what I’m most excited about -- the creative freedom.” Puma CEO Bjorn Gulden said, "Women are much more active today, they are fitter and lead a healthier lifestyle, and retailers understand that; they are increasingly giving more space to women’s products, and so we see this as a growing segment." Szmydke notes although Puma's women’s category currently accounts for less than 50% of sales, the "ailing sporting goods maker is counting on its new wing-woman." Gulden said that Rihanna is "an icon" for Puma's 14-25 target age group. Szmydke notes the 26-year-old singer "is to act as the company's global brand ambassador," joining sprinter Usain Bolt and AC Milan F Mario Balotelli, among others, while also "fronting Puma's ad campaign" for fall '15. The venture is the "latest in a series of Puma’s efforts to boost sales and burnish its brand image." Puma "declined to reveal the cost of the Rihanna pact, which is the first of its kind for the brand" (WOMEN'S WEAR DAILY, 12/17 issue).
ONLY GIRL IN THE WORLD: Gulden said Puma originally planned to sponsor a female athlete, but found “few athletes with global appeal." Gulden said that he "set out to return Puma to its roots" upon taking the reins of the company. He said, "Strange as it may sound, sports was what we hadn't been doing enough of over the past years." The WALL STREET JOURNAL's Ellen Jervell notes Gulden's team "narrowed Puma's product range" and "created 'a new-old team' strategy centered on sports and speed." Gulden: "Even Usain (Bolt) has to train, we all train, and that’s where we want to come in. We want to be a running brand for people who train" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 12/17).
