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After 18 months on the board, now CEO:
Arne Freundt presents his first balance sheet as Puma boss
Photo: PR
It is the day when the new Puma boss
Arne Freundt
steps out of the shadows after months of silence: At today's balance sheet press conference, the 42-year-old makes his first public appearance as Puma boss.
And the question is: Can Freundt build on the successes of his predecessor
Bjørn Gulden
(57)?
Freundt took over Puma in good condition.
The third quarter of 2022 was the company's strongest ever.
Freundt was able to meet investors' expectations that 2022 as a whole would be similarly pleasing: 2022 was the most successful year in the company's history.
Puma increased sales by almost a quarter to around 8.5 billion euros.
Adjusted for currency effects, the increase was almost 19 percent.
EBIT increased by 15 percent to 641 million euros, the bottom line was a profit of 354 million euros.
Shareholders are to receive a higher dividend of EUR 0.82 per share, ten cents more than in 2021.
Subdued growth expected
But the outlook looks less optimistic.
The war in Ukraine, the risk of a recession, high inflation and rising interest rates are leading to strong fluctuations in demand, said Puma when presenting the annual figures in Herzogenaurach.
In 2023, Puma therefore expects subdued currency-adjusted sales growth and EBIT of between 590 and 670 million euros.
Since manager magazin exclusively announced at the beginning of November that the then Puma boss Gulden would switch to rival Adidas, which was three times as big, there was great excitement - and overshadowed Freundt's rise.
"A kind of business phantom" was what the "Nürnberger Zeitung" called him at the time.
While the graduate Gulden attracted widespread media attention, the new Puma boss Freundt initially disappeared behind the doors of the billion-dollar company.
Who is the man who has risen to the helm of Puma after just 18 months on the board?
Freundt's career initially seems very down-to-earth and solid.
He studied at the University of Economics and Law in Oestrich-Winkel, Hesse, and completed his studies in business administration in Leipzig.
Before joining Puma, he worked for six years as a project manager at Siemens Management Consulting in Munich.
Born in Northern Lights, he remained true to his adopted home of southern Germany: in 2011 he moved from Siemens to become the head of strategy for Puma headquarters in Herzogenaurach, not far from Nuremberg.
Freundt remained chief of strategy until 2015, initially under CEO
Franz Koch
(44) and from 2013 under CEO Gulden, who had just joined the company.
Freundt then changed positions under the Norwegian manager, initially taking care of the retail business and e-commerce.
In 2019 he was responsible for Europe, the Middle East and Africa before being appointed to the Group Executive Board by Gulden in June 2021.
Freundt's promotion probably came earlier than expected, even for himself.
Since he joined the board in mid-2021, he has been considered the future successor to the Norwegian Gulden.
Last fall, everything suddenly happened very quickly.
Because Adidas initiated the early departure of CEO
Kasper Rorsted
(61), Gulden – whose contract expired at the end of the year anyway – seized the opportunity to switch to the larger neighboring company.
And Freundt became Puma CEO.
A quick listener - and a team player
Confidants describe the manager, whose Hamburg roots can still be heard in conversations, as super smart.
While Gulden relied a lot on his own decades of experience in the sports fashion business, Freundt is considered a listener who eagerly absorbs the know-how of his colleagues.
And who prefers to make his team bigger than smaller: Shortly after his promotion, Freundt created a fourth board department and made
Maria Valdes
(39) chief product officer.
This is also a signal from the new CEO that the success of a brand like Puma must always start with products that are as good and trendy as possible - marketing only works if the products keep their promises.
When he left, Gulden found friendly words for his successor.
"Arne worked directly with me for nine years, helped set up the strategy and made important decisions. He made a major contribution to Puma's success," said Gulden.
At the same time, the outgoing CEO raised the bar: "I am sure that he will do an even better job than me," says the former chairman.
Kind words from predecessor Gulden
Surpassing the predecessor will be a truly sporting endeavor.
In his nine years at the helm, Gulden more than doubled sales and helped Puma regain a modern image.
In addition, Gulden was known for venturing into niches.
Among other things in sponsorship.
In 2022, five-time world chess champion
Magnus Carlsen
(32) joined the ranks of illustrious athletes who sported the Puma logo.
At the age of just 13 he became the youngest grandmaster of his time.
In his early 20s he won his first World Chess Championship.
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Five-time world chess champion:
Magnus Carlsen joined the ranks of illustrious athletes advertising with the Puma logo in 2022
Photo: PR
Freundt's predecessor Gulden will also need new strategies - the separation from scandalous rapper Kanye West already burdened the Adidas business last year.
In 2023, sales and profits from the partnership will still be missing.
Gulden intends to also position Adidas more broadly again.
He cited motorsport as an example, in which Puma has been quite successful for a long time.
The entry of Liberty Media makes the Formula 1 racing series attractive again, especially for the US market.
It is likely that sooner rather than later, Gulden and his highly acclaimed successor will clash: the days of friendliness are over.
