Puma Acquisition Speculation Heats Up Again: All the Potential Suitors

There’s no shortage of possible bidders for Puma, but a sale — if there is to be one — might not come until further down the road.

That’s because the focus for the Puma brand might be centered more on its turnaround strategy, at least for now. First and foremost, the brand needs to focus on righting the ship first. Moreover, a successful turnaround would also garner a higher valuation — which would correlate to higher offers — if a sale were to occur.

Shares of Puma SE ticked up in September over speculation that its rival Adidas might be interested in acquiring the brand. Two days later, shares of Puma rose again over speculation that brand management firm Authentic Brands Group and private equity firm CVC would be throwing their hats into the ring.

Authentic Brands is one of those firms that becomes top of mind whenever a brand comes up for sale, mostly because the brand management firm gets all pitches from investment bankers in hopes that they could be drawn into a bidding process. In this case, Authentic Brands seems a natural fit because it has a footwear vertical that includes the Swedish footwear brand Tretorn that it acquired from Puma for an undisclosed sum in 2015. Authentic Brands also acquired Reebok from Adidas in 2022 for up to $2.5 billion. The footwear vertical also includes Airwalk, Tretorn, Frye, Sperry, Hunter, Rockport and Bandolino.

Last week, Puma shares popped up again, this time on rumblings that China’s sportswear firm Anta Sports could be eyeing the German athletic brand. In addition to media outlets citing Anta, Li Ning and Asics were also mentioned as possible bidders. Both Li Ning and Asics reportedly denied that any talks or even evaluations of potential interest were taking place, while Anta and Puma didn’t respond to requests for comment.

The fact that the German brand is struggling makes it a ripe candidate for takeover speculation. And investment bankers sometimes will float out an idea to see if there’s any interest as they hunt for potential deals they can get done.

In August, Bloomberg said in a story that Puma’s 29 percent majority stake owner Artemis — the parent firm that controls Gucci-owner Kering — was entertaining the possibility of a sale of its stake in Puma. A few weeks later, Reuters reported that Artemis would not sell at current valuations. Artemis chairman is François-Henri Pinault, who is also chairman of French luxury firm Kering.

Artemis on Monday declined comment, while Puma did not respond to a request for comment.

Asked whether Artémis, the Pinault family’s holding company, would consider selling its stake in the German sporting goods brand to reduce its debt load, Pinault noted in September that it is “not a strategic asset” and Artémis was “keeping all its options open.”

Keeping options open makes the most sense once Adidas veteran Arthur Hoeld took over the reigns as Puma chairman and CEO on July 1.

“I think the Puma turnaround is in the early stages, but they seem focused on doing the right things,” said Matt Powell, an advisor at Spurwink River. “Turnarounds are always expensive and take a lot of time.”

Powell observed that one of Puma’s weaknesses is that it does not have a “clear brand identity” in the U.S.

When the company reported third quarter results on Oct. 30, Hoeld said during a conference call that the company recognizes its “shortcomings and the issues that Puma is having right now, and what is holding Puma back to succeed.”

“We’re overexposed,” Hoeld told investors. He ticked off a list of all the things Puma needs to correct, indicating that the brand has a lot of work to do.

One big problem he noted was the lack of brand heat as the label lags behind competitors and therefore not commanding the same attention of brand love that is required to succeed in the market.

A second problem Hoeld cited was the channel mix between direct-to-consumer (DTC) and wholesale is “not on par with competition.” Most competitors are 60 percent wholesale with customers and 40 percent DTC, whereas Puma’s share is only 30 percent in DTC. That limits the brand’s “opportunity to showcase our product, to excite consumers directly with our storytelling, and also determine how we’re going to show up in the marketplace,” he said. In addition, out of Puma’s top 10 global customers, three are in the mass merchant category, which Hoeld said are “usually where off-price business, or off-season business, is sold in a very wide distribution and in a not very brand-enhancing manner.”

Puma also has a problem with too much inventory. “We have way too many products and we’re supplying way too many articles each and every season into the trade,” he said, adding that the brand’s key iconic products aren’t standing out. Once that’s fixed where key products tells consumers what Puma stands for could represent a “huge opportunity for us,” he told investors.

He also identified another huge problem, and that is that storytelling isn’t as integrated as it should be because the firm is organized in silos, resulting in fragmentation between the product, marketing and sales teams. “As a result of that, we do have to realize and to recognize that Puma as a brand has become too commercial over the years, too commercial from a distribution perspective, too commercial from a pricing and also from a promotion perspective,” Hoeld said.

Among the initial moves was to clean up its wholesale business and its overstock. “That is something which we’ll continue to do in the next couple of quarters,” he said, adding that the brand has also “reduced discounts in our very own channels. So, whether it’s e-commerce or retail, we have started to show up as a more healthy brand again that commands price points, which consumers are absolutely willing to pay for our products.”

Acknowledging that Puma’s brand position is no longer in the top three, given its softening sales and increased competition, Hoeld said the goal is to become a top three sports brand again by returning to above industry growth by Fiscal Year 2027, with 2026 a transition year for the brand.

In addition to reducing its product range, the company also said it was reducing its workforce by 1,400 positions starting this year and through 2026. The brand also made some leadership changes, naming Andreas Hubert as its chief operating officer, and expanding chief product officer Maria Valdes’ role to include brand and marketing and go-to market as she takes on the role of chief brand officer.

Forging ahead, Puma on Monday opened its largest-ever European flagship store on Oxford Street in London. The High Street is one of Europe’s busiest shopping destinations. The location, located seconds from Selfridges and Bond Street Tube Station, spans 24,000 square-feet. The store features Puma’s industry-leading innovations that include running technology Nitro and football boots Future, Ultra and King, as well as the brand’s current range of lifestyle products.

Hoeld said that store is Puma’s first flagship door in Europe, “which gives us the chance to connect with more people than ever before.”

The store features multiple customization areas for consumers to create unique products and immerse themselves in a digital running video-wall that reacts to every touch. Marking the opening, Puma is offering a special London exclusive collection that reimagines British icons such as the Union Flag and Harris Tweed.

The brand in October also opened a new Los Angeles office that serves as its new creative and innovation hub to complement the brand’s existing global and regional product teams located in Somerville, Mass.

Can a turnaround be achieved?

TD Cowen analyst John Kernan has a “Hold” rating on shares of Puma. With a focus on distribution and stock-keeping unit cleanup, performance led product categories and organizational streamlining, Kernan said global peers Adidas and Nike are working on similar playbooks with Puma in catch-up mode. He is cautious on turnarounds, including that of Under Armour given the increased competition in the sector. And he said the Puma cash burn and operating losses potentially could require a capital raise — the analyst estimated 500 million euros in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2026 — as well as a significant reduction in working capital due to lower inventory and higher payables.

Kernan didn’t rule out a turnaround, but said while Hoeld spoke about “all the sensible qualitative touchpoints,” his discussion was “short (for now) on providing any firm targets other than aiming for a return to growth beginning in Fiscal Year 2027.”

With contributions from Joelle Diderich