The German sporting goods supplier Puma SE announced the comprehensive reform of its marketing department on Wednesday. There will also be a change at the top: from July 1, Richard Teyssier will lead the global marketing organization as Global Brand & Marketing Director and in this function will report directly to CEO Arne Freundt, the company said.
Teyssier joined Puma in 2010 and has been Regional General Manager Europe since autumn 2021. Even after his promotion, he will temporarily lead the European business until the position is filled, according to a statement.
Puma is bundling its marketing organization in Herzogenaurach – Chief Brand Officer Adam Petrick is leaving
The background to the personnel change is the company’s decision to bundle marketing activities at the group’s headquarters in Herzogenaurach. The goal is to “enable better alignment and faster decision-making with the company’s global product functions, global go-to-market function and creative direction,” Puma said. As part of the reform, “effective July 1, 2023, the Brand Management and Marketing Operations departments would be relocated from Boston to Herzogenaurach.”
However, the previous Chief Brand Officer Adam Petrick “decided not to come to Herzogenaurach, but to devote himself to new professional challenges away from Puma after more than two decades with the company,” said the sports goods manufacturer. However, Petrick will “remain with the company until the end of the year to ensure a smooth transition”.
Commenting on the change in leadership in marketing, CEO Freundt said: “I would like to thank Adam Petrick for his important contribution to Puma’s success during his more than 20 years with us,” he said in a statement. “In Richard Teyssier we have found the ideal candidate to drive Puma’s brand strategy going forward.”
Teyssier is “not only a true marketing specialist with strong expertise in brand management”, but also “an integral member of our Puma family” and “knows our business inside out from his more than 12 years as General Manager at Puma France and Puma Europe,” says Freundt.
CEO Freundt hopes for “even more effective campaigns”
The CEO also explained the reasons for the organizational reform that has now been announced: “The Puma brand is at the heart of our success,” explained Freundt. “However, our analyzes have shown that we still have a lot of potential to get the best out of her. Therefore, one of our most important strategic priorities is to continuously strengthen our brand. By locating the global marketing organization in close proximity to our core product functions at corporate headquarters, we are laying the organizational foundation for this.”
With this step, the sports goods manufacturer “ensures uniform brand communication” and can “make decisions more quickly in order to further strengthen the Puma brand and further sharpen our customer focus,” stressed Freundt. “The reorganization will enable us to carry out even more effective campaigns in order to further anchor our brand in the minds of our customers.”
Despite the departure of the central marketing functions from Boston, the company remains focused on the world’s most important market for sporting goods: Puma North America’s marketing organization will be “more strengthened by being responsible for US sports marketing and US product collaborations in order to make the brand even more attractive in the US market,” the group explained.