Puma's Sales Plunge 20% in Q4, Projected to Continue Declining in 2026
BERLIN – The German sportswear brand Puma has had a challenging year, with annual sales dropping 8.1% to €7.29 billion, down from €8.39 billion in 2024. The fourth quarter was particularly disheartening, with sales plummeting 20.1% to €1.56 billion, currency adjusted.
"2025 was a reset year for us," CEO Arthur Hoeld explained. "We want to return to above-industry growth and generate healthy profits in the medium term."
The company attributed the sales collapse to "strategic reset initiatives" starting in the third quarter. Hoeld, who previously worked for Puma's larger local competitor Adidas for 26 years, took the top job in July and initiated what he calls "cleaning up."
Puma has taken back stock, reduced promotional activity, simplified its product portfolio, and cut around 1,400 corporate roles. Hoeld noted, "Puma has become too commercial, overexposed in the wrong channels, with too many discounts."
The clean-up efforts resulted in double-digit sales declines across all of Puma's territories in the fourth quarter, leading to a 6.9% decrease in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, and a 7.4% fall in the Asia Pacific region for the full year.
In January, Chinese sportswear brand Anta became Puma's biggest shareholder, promising to help the German brand improve its sales in China. The Americas saw the biggest sales decline, dropping 10%, with North America considered a problematic market due to excessive discounting.
Sales in all product categories fell by high single digits, with footwear sales down 7.1%, apparel down 9.7%, and accessories down 8.5%, currency adjusted.
Puma's earnings before interests and taxes (EBIT), a key indicator of business performance, plummeted in the fourth quarter, falling to -€357.2 million from a positive figure earlier in the year and €550 million in 2024.
Puma executives anticipate a challenging 2026, projecting continued sales declines in the low to mid-single digits and EBIT remaining in the red, between -€50 million and -€150 million. The company reiterates that 2026 will be a year of transition.
