Puma SE is a German multinational corporation which designs and manufactures athletic and casual footwear, apparel, and accessories, headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, Germany.

[9] Christoph Dassler was a worker in a shoe factory, while his wife Pauline ran a small laundry in the Franconian town of Herzogenaurach, 20 km (12.4 mi) from the city of Nuremberg.

When he returned from fighting in World War I, Rudolf was trained as a salesman at a porcelain factory, and later in a leather trading business in Nuremberg.

At the time, electricity supplies in the town were unreliable, and the brothers sometimes had to use pedal power from a stationary bicycle to run their equipment.

The brothers drove from Bavaria to the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin with a suitcase full of spikes and persuaded United States sprinter Jesse Owens to use them, the first sponsorship for an African American.

[18] Rudolf developed a football boot with screw-in studs, called the "Super Atom" in collaboration with people such as West Germany's national coach Sepp Herberger.

[13] During the 1968 Olympics Black Power Salute, Puma-sponsored African-American athletes Tommie Smith and John Carlos, after having won gold and bronze in the 200 meters, respectively, took to the podium with their Puma Suede shoes in hand and bowed their heads and raised their black-gloved fists in silent protest during the playing of the national anthem, an act meant to stand up for human rights and to stand up for black Americans.

[23][24] The most notable event in the Dassler brothers feud, the breaking of the "Pelé Pact" outraged Horst, and future peace agreements were called off.

[21][22] The Puma deal for Pelé was praised as a shrewd marketing move, and many business experts credit the rivalry and competition between the two companies for transforming sports apparel into a highly lucrative industry.

Designed for basketball player Walt "Clyde" Frazier, it gained wide popularity and became significant in the old school hip hop and skate punk subcultures.

[30] In May 1989, Rudolf's sons Armin and Gerd Dassler sold their 72 percent stake in Puma to Swiss business Cosa Liebermann SA.

[35] On 10 April, the French conglomerate PPR (which became Kering in 2013) announced that it had bought a 27% stake in Puma, clearing the way for a full takeover.

[5] The company has corporate offices around the world, including four defined as "central hubs": Assembly Row, Somerville, Massachusetts;[48] Hong Kong; Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam; and global headquarters in Herzogenaurach, Germany.

Puma's social media marketing strategies have a direct effect on purchase intentions, which is a leading indicator of actual sales, especially in the middle class.

[51][52] Through supply chain finance, Puma helps suppliers avoid cash flow issues by offering early payment on invoices, reducing costs and risk.

National football teams include Ghana, Ivory Coast, Iceland, New Zealand, Senegal, Switzerland, Austria, Morocco, Egypt, Bahrain, Philippines, Portugal and Malaysia.

They sponsor athletes Karsten Warholm, Shericka Jackson, Mondo Duplantis, Yaroslava Mahuchikh, Felix Streng, Julien Alfred, Marcell Jacobs, Konstanze Klosterhalfen, Andre De Grasse, and Elaine Thompson-Herah.

[58] Several world records were achieved by athletes wearing Puma shoes, such as Heinz Fütterer (1954), Armin Hary (1960), Jim Hines (1968), Tommie Smith (1968), Asafa Powell (2015), and Usain Bolt (2002).

[59][60] In 2018, Puma announced its entrance back into basketball after a break of almost 20 years, and appointed Jay-Z as the division's creative director.

[63][64] In December 2021, the brand launched High Court, its first women's basketball line, designed by creative director June Ambrose.

[71] In Formula 1, Puma equips the teams of Mercedes AMG Petronas, Scuderia Ferrari, Stake Kick Sauber, and Williams.

[82] Puma has also partnered with LaMelo Ball, NBA athlete, in 2020 to create a line including sports, culture, music and fashion.

[87] According to a joint report from Labour Behind the Label and Community Legal Education Centre, 30 workers fainted in November 2012 while producing clothing for Puma in China.

[88][89] In 2014, almost 120 workers fainted in two Cambodian clothing factories where sportswear was being produced for Puma and Adidas, due to temperatures above 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 °C).

[citation needed] In 2020, the Australian Strategic Policy Institute accused at least 82 major brands, including Puma, of being connected to forced Uyghur labor in Xinjiang.

[97] In 2023, Puma announced that it would stop using kangaroo leather in its products, including its redesigned KING football boot, which features uppers containing at least 20% recycled material.

[104] The initiative features figures like Alice Aedy and Andrew Burgess, who aim to make sustainability more transparent and resonate with Gen Z.

As teen spending power grows, Puma’s focus on environmental priorities aligns with this demographic's values, complementing other Gen Z-focused efforts like metaverse projects.