BERLIN — Puma joined the rush to cash in on soccer’s World Cup with the unveiling Wednesday of its new soccer-inspired leisurewear collection.
The women’s and men’s products are being launched in time for the soccer tournament, which will be held in locations throughout Germany in June and July, and is a collaboration with charity group United for Africa.
The collection includes T-shirts inspired by the uniforms players will wear, white fitted sweatpants and sneakers heavily influenced by soccer boots. The line is accompanied by matching accessories that fit the championship’s party atmosphere. Dubbed the viewing kit, a bag with insulated lining is designed to keep three beer bottles cool, while a matching belt has a buckle that doubles as a bottle-opener. The pieces come in various team colors so that fans can mix and match.
The new collection is part of Puma’s multipronged marketing strategy for the run-up to the World Cup. Although they declined to reveal exact figures, company executives said this year’s marketing budget would be the largest Puma has spent in its 58-year history.
“The World Cup is incredibly important for us,” Puma chief executive officer Jochen Zeitz said in an interview. “It will give us a chance to get the brand out there and position the label. Of course, it will also be an opportunity for us to increase profits.”
Puma had sales of $2.2 billion last year. The company is sponsoring 12 of the 36 teams that are playing in the event.
According to Zeitz, soccer has always been a major focus for Puma.
“We were the first label to make football [soccer] clothing acceptable to the fashion mainstream,” he said, citing the company’s previous collaborative lines with designers such as Jil Sander.
Other companies such as Adidas, Nike and even Prada have been developing items around the World Cup. In June and July, when the finals are being held in Berlin, a Puma tram selling the label’s soccer leisurewear and staging celebrity events will be touring the city. Puma will also have a “soccer headquarters” in Café Moskau, one of the city’s hippest nightclubs, where concerts and events will be held throughout the summer.
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United for Africa, which is made up of 30 German aid organizations and under the patronage of the group’s German president, Horst Köhler, was set up in 2003. Since January, Puma has been working with the charity to raise funds for Africa and increase awareness of the continent’s problems. Zeitz is himself a frequent visitor to Africa, both privately and on business, and speaks Swahili.
In the run-up to the World Cup, Puma will be selling soccer T-shirts that can be customized in the store with different football designs. Seven euros, or $8.60, of the 30-euro, or $36.80, retail price will go directly to United for Africa. White campaign wristbands will also be sold in stores, with 50 percent of the 3-euro price, or $3.68, donated to the charity.
As official sponsors and kit suppliers for eight African soccer teams, Puma sees the joint operation as logical. To mirror this and provide unity with the charity campaign, the collection is made up mostly of the three colors shared by the African teams: red, yellow and green.
The United for Africa line, as well as the replicas of the original team uniforms of all 12 Puma-sponsored soccer teams, will be available in the label’s German concept stores, the HQ at Café Moskau and the charity tram.