As Bolt Wins, Sponsor Puma Does Nothing

Jamaican sprint sensation Usain Bolt's historic Olympic victories have provided his shoe sponsor, Puma AG, with an unexpected burst of publicity on the global stage. And yet the German footwear company's immediate reaction -- as laid back as a sunny Jamaican morning -- is almost the opposite of Mr. Bolt's now-famous celebratory antics.

While sponsors like Visa Inc. rushed out congratulatory ads touting Michael Phelps's triumphs -- and Nike Inc. took out full-page ads in China consoling star hurdler Liu Xiang when he came up injured -- Puma has laid low in the wake of Mr. Bolt's world-record performances in the 100-meter and 200-meter sprints. That means no big print ads, no instant TV commercials, no giant murals unveiled in Beijing, Los Angeles or even Kingston, Jamaica.

"When you do congratulations ads, are you doing it for Wall Street or for the consumer?" asks Puma's Chief Marketing Officer Antonio Bertone. Puma, which is 68%-owned by French retailer PPR SA, argues that its target customer -- hip, young, urban and perceiving the brand as alternative fashion as much as high-performance athletic wear -- is resistant to the monolithic marketing campaigns typical of the industry.

Read the whole story here.

Comments

[ramper]

Puma is waiting for all the drug tests to clear.

[MarcInCA]

"We are fun and light-hearted," says Mr. Bertone. "Jamaica is the ultimate embodiment of that: food, music, color and vibrancy. You can say Jamaica and always smile. Nobody feels oppressed when you say 'Jamaica.'"

HAH!!! Let Antonio Bertone be subjected to a good ole' fashioned Jamaican gay bashing and let's see how much he's smiling, feeling fun, light-hearted and unoppressed.

http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1182991,00.html
http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/html/20070428T020000-0500_122324_OBS_MOB_BEATS_CROSS_DRESSER.asp
http://articles.latimes.com/2005/jan/09/world/fg-homophobia9

"Though familiar to Americans primarily as a laid-back beach destination...its rampant violence against gays and lesbians has prompted human-rights groups to confer another ugly distinction: the most homophobic place on earth."

[divergal]

Hooray for Puma! I like that it's not jumping on the famewagon.
hey, I thought the Games were about sportsmanship? I didn't see his chestpounding as showboating, but rather as pride n accomplishment and in country. Most athletes do it, after all, it goes with the territory.

I just may go out and buy a pair of Pumas.
And as for the gays in jamaica? Well, the country has a lot of work to do to free all its citizens, that's true, but there are many countries much, much worse. Like CHINA!!!!

[Furby]

... or America for that matter. I hear ya.

[chinationreport]

Nobody even reported about him donating $50000 to the kids in Chinese quake-hit zone. He visited some kids, invited them to his country to visit, he spent time with them to inspire and encourage them, plus $50K. Story posted here: http://www.chinationreport.com/

[jasjohn128]

"They are kids. They deserve a better future," Bolt said, crouching between the wheelchairs. "I hope they can still enjoy themselves, because they are still kids. And, it's great for kids to live in joys. I just want to help them."

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-08/23/content_6964720.htm

Ad agencies must be really upset because it'd be a big payday for them. With the cost to be passed along to Puma's customers, of course.

[the964kid]

Poor business move by Puma.

In this fiercely competitive market literally having the world's fastest man under sponsorship might be a once in a lifetime moment. Why not do something?? Anything???! I wouldn't wanna be a shareholder in Puma and see these kind of opportunities being missed.

Hey Bolt, you'd better have Nike, Reebok or Adidas on speed-dial for when your Puma contract expires.

[bola47]

i think that holding up those gold running shoes for the world to see was understated but still pushed the message across. there are many ways to advertise and i believe that bolt himself has agreed to not make a big splash. not every world champion is an egomaniac.

[Furby]

I'm confused, you thought him holding up the gold running shoes for the world to see was understated? Looked pretty overstated if you consider that he's not getting a nickel for plugging their product. Gotta love that story. Is this the beginning of something new, free endorsement? :)

[Egalitare]

Mr. Bolt? There's a Mr. Knight holding for you on line 1.

[joebiz]

Bolt should bolt Puma.

[iemmathu]

Puma's Chief Marketing Officer Antonio Bertone is quoted in this article saying:

"Jamaica is the ultimate embodiment of that: food, music, color and vibrancy. You can say Jamaica and always smile. Nobody feels oppressed when you say 'Jamaica.' That's priceless."

Tell that to the gays and lesbians that live there. I am sure they feel completely liberated and unthreatened.

[dadw5boys]

Does anyone remember LOLO JONES ?

She got tons of press with cameras on her at every event.

Even when she lost she got a lot od press.

The great runner who beat her ALSO an American was even snubed after the race until LOLO got her media coverage.

One would have to wornder if the shade of your skins determines how much press or money you will make after winning gold medals .

" Winning Gold for your country ?"

[Pupster]

Probably not, since Michael Johnson got lots of press when he was 200/400 champion.

It's not skin color, it's name recognition and guarantees of gold medals. Lolo Jones was an overwhelming favorite, but she lost. Just like years ago, when Reebok did that whole Dan vs. Dave campaign for the two American decathloners, but then they lost. Four years later, when Dan O'Brien tried again, he won, but no favorable media coverage.

This year, the two beach volleyball gals got a lot of press. Not because beach volleyball is so popular -- it's not -- but because they were almost a gold medal guarantee. Usain Bolt, despite his dominating performance, was not the favorite. Tyson Gay was. Then Asafa Powell. Usain Bolt was the third favorite. So Puma was caught unprepared.

[YunekFlava]

Ah yeah. He should have been with Nike anyway. I 'm not surprised, PUMA sucks.

[Bobleblah1]

Bolt will be with NIKE as soon as humanly possible
and judging by how he runs, that will be very soon.

Puma is headed for a down swing anyway.

[castlerider]

This just goes to show how stupid it is to showboat.

Better to have the wind at your back silently and powerfully, then to break wind yourself.
It might be a stinker.

[HatingTheGame]

Sort of like that guy... gee, wait, um... damn, can't remember his name.

[shyamg22]

puma goes to market much differently than adidas (including reebok) and nike.

They know that they cannot afford the same endorsement contracts that nike and adidas do so they tie up deals with national sports governing bodies instead, and rely on them to kit out the atheletes early with puma so they'll stay with puma later.

Puma was hurting in much of the 90's but when the reinvented themselves as a sports/fashion/lifestyle company they exploded. If they tried to sell shoes on their 'technical' merits only, they'd lose out to adidas or nike.

puma has done well in tying up deals with most major african national football teams. Their sponsorship of the italian football team is one where they try to blend performance with the perception of 'italian' fashion.

Right now, whatever puma does, they're doing it well because they've been able to achieve growth and differentiation on the market place that their much larger competitors have lacked.

[ankae]

It is important to tell the truth and this article is not telling the readers the full story. I provided links to other sources that show that Usain Bolt has been fully recognized by the CEO and executives at Puma.

Below is the link to Puma presenting bolt with the BMW and bonus ........

Sprinter Usain Bolt of Jamaica (L) receives the model of a BMW car he will get in Jamaica from Jochen Zeitz, CEO and Chairman of the Board of Puma, during a news conference in Beijing August 23, 2008. He has already netted a £500,000 (I million US) bonus from Puma

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/olympics/article4596711.ece

http://news.yahoo.com/nphotos/BMW-Jamaica-Chairman-of-the-Board-Jochen-Zeitz-BMW-car/ss/events/bs/081308bmw/im:/080823/ids_photos_sp/r2464395220.jpg/


US Gold Medal Winner - 1968 Tommy Smith who has represented Puma presented new shoes to Usain and said 'I'm going to keep my eye on you.' Usain's golden shoes will now go into the Puma museum.

There are several other sources that show that there were parties in Beijing to honor him and other appearances sponsored by Puma. To suggest that his sponsor is not acknowledging him is very misleading and false!

[HatingTheGame]

Man, how much you wanna bet that he gets jacked in Jamaica with that Beemer. Not sure where he lives, but wouldn't wanna be driving around Kingston town without a full on posse watching my butt.

[Tom95134]

Remember, the Puma, just like IOC, is run by a bunch of 50 and 60 years olds dressed in dark blue suits. What would you expect?

[KillTheMessenger]

I would expect them to make good shoes. And I would also expect them to leave the bull on the pasture where it belongs.

:-)