Puma to launch largest campaign with swagger of USAIN BOLT......dubbed 'Forever Faster' which will embody the swagger of Jamaican sprinter Bolt....the thrill, the fun, and the swagger of Usain Bolt himself, the man who best personifies this new strategy and ambition,"

BY STEVEN JACKSON Business reporter jacksons@jamaicaobserver.com  Sunday, March 09, 2014   

GLOBAL sports brand Puma will launch its largest campaign in a decade dubbed 'Forever Faster' which will embody the swagger of Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt.

The campaign will take off in Autumn 2014 and is aimed at positioning Puma as the fastest sports brand in the world.

Usain Bolt

"The phrase simultaneously references the emotional benefit of owning speed — the thrill, the fun, and the swagger of Usain Bolt himself, the man who best personifies this new strategy and ambition," accoridng to Puma chairman Jean Francois Palus in the just-released 2013 annual report.

Puma needs the campaign — its sales are flat at (euro) 2.98 billion and it recorded a (euro)5.3-million profit or 92 per cent decline in year on year. The slash was due to special items relating

to a(euro) 129-million impairment based on reduced goodwill from expected earnings in individual markets; and also the closure of a Product Development Centre in Vietnam.

"In 2014, Puma will reposition itself to become a true Sports Brand and give credible proof that it is indeed Forever Faster," Palus added in the statement accompanying the financials. "Puma is excited to launch its new brand statement 'Forever Faster' through a global media campaign in the Autumn/Winter season 2014 - the company's biggest media campaign in the last decade. This re-ignition of the brand heat was kicked off by extending the partnership with the fastest athlete on the planet, Usain Bolt, and was further fuelled by signing one of the world's top football clubs, Arsenal FC, and Italian superstar Mario Balotelli." more