In an interview Friday with Euro am Sonntag, the news outlet, Puma CEO Arne Freundt said he expects the brand to return to double-digit growth in China this year and return to growth in the U.S. in 2024.
“In China, we see a gradual improvement in the market environment and expect to return to double-digit growth already this year,” said Freundt, according to Reuters reporting. In the U.S., “We have a very difficult market environment, but we are very confident that we will grow again in 2024,” he continued.
In the second quarter, Puma’s sales in North America were down 17 percent on a currency-neutral basis, with a similar decline in the first quarter. Puma attributed the decrease in its North American business to overall weakness in the marketplace, particularly to efforts to reduce the brand’s exposure to off-price channels.
Greater China continued to see a resurgence, recording 36 percent growth on a currency-neutral basis in the second quarter, although stores faced lockdowns in the year-ago period. Overall sales in the Asia-Pacific region declined 1.7 percent on a currency-neutral basis in 2022 due to declines in China.
Freundt’s comments came after a report on Thursday from Stifel analyst Cedric Lecasble forecasting Puma’s third-quarter earnings could miss market expectations due to the impact of a stronger euro against the dollar year-over-year, weakening demand in North America and a slower-than-expected-recovery in China.
Photo courtesy Puma
