BY DAVID MALONEY, EDITORIAL DIRECTOR
REDUCING LABOR
Strategy
SPEED IS CRUCIAL IN ANY ATHLETIC ENDEAVOR. PUMA, THE GERMAN
sports brand, is well aware of this. Speed wins—not only on the field, but also in
distribution.
For a time, however, Puma North America faced a speed challenge of its own.
Years of steady retail growth coupled with surging e-commerce volume left it
struggling to keep pace with order fulfillment demands.
A recent consolidation of its distribution operations and the addition of new
software and related technology changed all that. With its mojo back, Puma is
now running well ahead of the pack.
ALL UNDER ONE ROOF
As a leading provider of footwear, sports apparel, and golf equipment through
its Puma and Cobra Puma Golf brands, Puma records about $5 billion in annual sales, about $1.75 billion of which comes from the Americas. Up until a few
years ago, it served customers in the U.S. from three distribution centers: one
A consolidation and
new automated storage
equipment helped Puma
North America add the
speed it needs to meet
escalating customer
demands.
Off and running
