3rd title is a charm
PUMA athlete, Chiara Tamburlini, dominates in Taiwan with a wire-to-wire victory
PUMA’s financial performance from April through to June showed that our company is picking up momentum and that our products resonate well with our consumers.
Sales grew by 13% adjusted for currency impact to 827 million Euros in the second quarter 2016. In all product segments – Footwear, Apparel and Accessories – we sold more products than we did in the same period last year.
Sales in Footwear improved by 7.3% currency adjusted to 360.2 million Euros because our business units Sportstyle, Fundamentals and Teamsport performed well. Apparel, however, posted the highest growth rate among the segments. Sales jumped by 19.5% currency adjusted to 299.1 million Euros, which was mainly driven by our Teamsport business as more football-related products were sold due to the UEFA Euro 2016. Accessories rose by 14.1% currency adjusted to 167.1 million Euros, which was triggered by a higher demand for backpacks and headwear.
In terms of regions, EMEA stood out with a double-digit sales growth of 23.5% to 321.3 million Euros. This was down to increased demand for products related to the UEFA Euro 2016. Sales in the Americas rose by 5% currency adjusted to 315.6 million Euros, while the Asia/ Pacific region improved by 10.3% currency adjusted to 189.6 million Euros.
“We are happy with the development in the second quarter,” said our CEO Bjørn Gulden. “Sales developed as expected with double-digit organic growth.”
PUMA’s operating expenses only increased by 3.2% to 368.8 million Euros. These slightly higher costs compared with last year derive from intensified marketing activities and upgrades of our retail stores. In other operating areas and functions, we kept the costs stable.
This only moderate rise in costs combined with higher sales led to an improvement in our earnings. Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) climbed by 75.1% to 11.9 million Euros. Our net earnings amounted to 1.6 million Euros after we made a loss of 3.3 million Euros in the second quarter last year. This is still not where we want to be and where most competitors are, but a big step in the right direction.
"We continue to see better sell-out of our products in the stores, as we feel consumers are getting more interested in our brand and products again. Meanwhile, we continue to work hard with the leading retailers in order to secure more and better in store space in their stores.