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Bolt gives Puma sales headstart
By Roger Blitz
Published: August 18 2008 03:00 | Last updated: August 18 2008 03:00
function floatContent(){var paraNum = "3"paraNum = paraNum - 1;var tb = document.getElementById('floating-con');var nl = document.getElementById('floating-target');if(tb.getElementsByTagName("div").length> 0){if (nl.getElementsByTagName("p").length>= paraNum){nl.insertBefore(tb,nl.getElementsByTagNam e("p")[paraNum]);}else {if (nl.getElementsByTagName("p").length == 3){nl.insertBefore(tb,nl.getElementsByTagName("p")[2]);}else {nl.insertBefore(tb,nl.getElementsByTagName("p")[0]);}}}}As Usain Bolt held up one of his gold-decked running shoes for the cameras after his historic 100m victory, the Jamaican sprinter struck a blow in another battle for supremacy.
Bolt's domination of his rivals fulfilled his pre-race tag as favourite, but for Puma, the German sportswear manufacturer whose Theseus II spikes he was wearing, it was a triumph for an underdog.
Puma came to Beijing nowhere near rivals Nike and Adidas in terms of market value and sales, trailing in the number of Olympic athletes contracted to wear its apparel, and behind in the race for a share of the lucrative Chinese market.
But Puma does have Bolt, who goes for two more golds this week. The sight of the fastest man alive lapping up the crowd's adulation in what may have been the most watched sporting moment of the most watched sporting event of the year gives the company the kind of marketing kick that will have had its rivals quietly fuming.
The 100m final was billed as a showdown between Bolt, his fellow Jamaican Asafa Powell and Tyson Gay, the US world champion, who failed to qualify for the race. But with Bolt signed to Puma, Powell with Nike and Gay with Adidas, it was more than just a running race. "It was a great allusion to the footwear wars," says Larry Eder, who runs Running Network, an athletics website.
The reasoning goes that the company with the most athletes on its books gets the most medals and therefore the better marketing opportunities. Not necessarily so, says Joerg Sobel, Puma's general manager in the Asia Pacific region. "You don't have to have the biggest number of athletes, you have to have the right ones."
As a driver of sportswear sales, the Olympic 100m final is on a level above most other sporting events and, according to Mr Eder, there was "a huge battle" between Puma and Nike to sign up the current crop of talented Jamaican sprinters.
"Puma had the Jamaican federation [signed up], but most of the individual athletes signed up to Nike," he says. "The only athlete Puma kept was Bolt."
Bolt's victory is the second blow at these games for Adidas and Nike. They began with the thrilling sight of Li Ning, China's former Olympic champion gymnast, circling the roof of the Bird's Nest stadium and lighting the Olympic flame.
It was more chilling than thrilling for Adidas, official Olympic sponsor and linked to Yao Ming, China's 7ft 5in basketball star, and Nike, as they watched Li, the founder of the eponymous Chinese sportswear company, pulling off one of the more brazen acts in the history of ambush marketing.
Privately, Adidas executives sniff at Puma's good fortune. "This industry is a two-horse race, and in China it's a two-horse race for market leadership," said one executive. Still, Jan Runau of Adidas agrees it would love to have signed Bolt. They had Gay instead. "That's what you get with sport," he says.
Nike has deals with 22 Chinese Olympic teams, and promotes Liu Xiang, China's big hope in the 110m hurdles. It has been pouring resources into signing budding talent, but as Charlie Brooks of Nike says: "You have to hope that they can live up to their talent."
Powell was last week modelling his Nike Zoom Aerofly spikes. On Saturday, he finished fifth, a long, long way behind Bolt.
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2008
Usain Bolt: Olympic Champion Gives Puma the Ultimate Golden Moment
August 19, 2008 · Print This Article
Gold Laces, Uppers and Soles of Bolt's Puma Theseus Spikes
When Usain Bolt held up his golden running shoes for the crowd and cameras after his historic 100m victory, the Jamaican sprinter created an iconic image to saturate the media and go down in the history books. To say they're a little flashy is like saying Bolt can run at a decent lick.
Bolt's domination of his rivals fulfilled his pre-race tag as 'favourite', but for Puma, the German sportswear manufacturer whose Theseus II spikes he was wearing, it a signaled a priceless marketing coup. The kind of blockbuster endorsement a shoe company simply can't put a price tag on. Puma came to Beijing nowhere near rivals Nike and Adidas in terms of market value, trailing in the number of Olympic athletes contracted to wear its apparel, and behind in the race for a share of the lucrative Chinese market. But Puma does have Bolt, who goes for two more 'golds' this week. The sight of the fastest man alive lapping up the crowd's adulation in what may have been the most watched sporting moment of the year gives Puma a marketing kick that outruns its rivals in a pinch. The 100m final was billed as a showdown between Bolt, his fellow Jamaican Asafa Powell and Tyson Gay, the US world champion, who failed to qualify for the race. But with Bolt signed to Puma, Powell with Nike and Gay with Adidas, it was more than just an athletic race. It was the ultimate footwear wars showdown.
As a driver of sportswear sales, the Olympic 100m final is on a level above most other sporting events. There's huge competition to sign the current crop of talented Jamaican sprinters. Bolt's victory is the second blow at these games for Adidas and Nike. The first was the thrilling sight of Li Ning, China's former Olympic champion gymnast, circling the roof of the Bird's Nest stadium to light the Olympic flame. It was more chilling than thrilling for Adidas, official Olympic sponsor and linked to Yao Ming, China's basketball star, and Nike, as they watched Li, the founder of the eponymous Chinese sportswear company, pulling off one of the more brazen acts in the history of ambush marketing. Jamaica's Asafa Powell was pumping to catch up in his Nike Zoom Aerofly spikes. On Saturday, he finished fifth, a long, long way behind Bolt. For the best prices on Puma, Nike, Reebok and Adidas - visit the only shoe-specific comparison shopping engine online, Shoecompare.com. 
Written by Si Si for ShoeMinx · Filed Under Shoe Gossip
Tagged: 100 meter sprint, Adidas, athletic shoes, beijing, coup, donovan bailey, gold medal, gold puma, gold running shoe, gold shoe, jamaica, li ning, marketing, Nike, nike
By Roger Blitz
Published: August 18 2008 03:00 | Last updated: August 18 2008 03:00
function floatContent(){var paraNum = "3"paraNum = paraNum - 1;var tb = document.getElementById('floating-con');var nl = document.getElementById('floating-target');if(tb.getElementsByTagName("div").length> 0){if (nl.getElementsByTagName("p").length>= paraNum){nl.insertBefore(tb,nl.getElementsByTagNam e("p")[paraNum]);}else {if (nl.getElementsByTagName("p").length == 3){nl.insertBefore(tb,nl.getElementsByTagName("p")[2]);}else {nl.insertBefore(tb,nl.getElementsByTagName("p")[0]);}}}}As Usain Bolt held up one of his gold-decked running shoes for the cameras after his historic 100m victory, the Jamaican sprinter struck a blow in another battle for supremacy.
Bolt's domination of his rivals fulfilled his pre-race tag as favourite, but for Puma, the German sportswear manufacturer whose Theseus II spikes he was wearing, it was a triumph for an underdog.
Puma came to Beijing nowhere near rivals Nike and Adidas in terms of market value and sales, trailing in the number of Olympic athletes contracted to wear its apparel, and behind in the race for a share of the lucrative Chinese market.
But Puma does have Bolt, who goes for two more golds this week. The sight of the fastest man alive lapping up the crowd's adulation in what may have been the most watched sporting moment of the most watched sporting event of the year gives the company the kind of marketing kick that will have had its rivals quietly fuming.
The 100m final was billed as a showdown between Bolt, his fellow Jamaican Asafa Powell and Tyson Gay, the US world champion, who failed to qualify for the race. But with Bolt signed to Puma, Powell with Nike and Gay with Adidas, it was more than just a running race. "It was a great allusion to the footwear wars," says Larry Eder, who runs Running Network, an athletics website.
The reasoning goes that the company with the most athletes on its books gets the most medals and therefore the better marketing opportunities. Not necessarily so, says Joerg Sobel, Puma's general manager in the Asia Pacific region. "You don't have to have the biggest number of athletes, you have to have the right ones."
As a driver of sportswear sales, the Olympic 100m final is on a level above most other sporting events and, according to Mr Eder, there was "a huge battle" between Puma and Nike to sign up the current crop of talented Jamaican sprinters.
"Puma had the Jamaican federation [signed up], but most of the individual athletes signed up to Nike," he says. "The only athlete Puma kept was Bolt."
Bolt's victory is the second blow at these games for Adidas and Nike. They began with the thrilling sight of Li Ning, China's former Olympic champion gymnast, circling the roof of the Bird's Nest stadium and lighting the Olympic flame.
It was more chilling than thrilling for Adidas, official Olympic sponsor and linked to Yao Ming, China's 7ft 5in basketball star, and Nike, as they watched Li, the founder of the eponymous Chinese sportswear company, pulling off one of the more brazen acts in the history of ambush marketing.
Privately, Adidas executives sniff at Puma's good fortune. "This industry is a two-horse race, and in China it's a two-horse race for market leadership," said one executive. Still, Jan Runau of Adidas agrees it would love to have signed Bolt. They had Gay instead. "That's what you get with sport," he says.
Nike has deals with 22 Chinese Olympic teams, and promotes Liu Xiang, China's big hope in the 110m hurdles. It has been pouring resources into signing budding talent, but as Charlie Brooks of Nike says: "You have to hope that they can live up to their talent."
Powell was last week modelling his Nike Zoom Aerofly spikes. On Saturday, he finished fifth, a long, long way behind Bolt.
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2008
Usain Bolt: Olympic Champion Gives Puma the Ultimate Golden Moment
August 19, 2008 · Print This Article
Gold Laces, Uppers and Soles of Bolt's Puma Theseus Spikes
Bolt's domination of his rivals fulfilled his pre-race tag as 'favourite', but for Puma, the German sportswear manufacturer whose Theseus II spikes he was wearing, it a signaled a priceless marketing coup. The kind of blockbuster endorsement a shoe company simply can't put a price tag on. Puma came to Beijing nowhere near rivals Nike and Adidas in terms of market value, trailing in the number of Olympic athletes contracted to wear its apparel, and behind in the race for a share of the lucrative Chinese market. But Puma does have Bolt, who goes for two more 'golds' this week. The sight of the fastest man alive lapping up the crowd's adulation in what may have been the most watched sporting moment of the year gives Puma a marketing kick that outruns its rivals in a pinch. The 100m final was billed as a showdown between Bolt, his fellow Jamaican Asafa Powell and Tyson Gay, the US world champion, who failed to qualify for the race. But with Bolt signed to Puma, Powell with Nike and Gay with Adidas, it was more than just an athletic race. It was the ultimate footwear wars showdown.
Written by Si Si for ShoeMinx · Filed Under Shoe Gossip
Tagged: 100 meter sprint, Adidas, athletic shoes, beijing, coup, donovan bailey, gold medal, gold puma, gold running shoe, gold shoe, jamaica, li ning, marketing, Nike, nike