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French luxury brands firm PPR says it will maintain Puma as a stand-alone brand if it takes it over.
The owner of the Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent brands has grabbed control of the German sportswear group, acquiring a 27 per cent stake in a deal that values the company at £5.3 billion ($14.4 billion).
PPR has also made an offer for the rest of Puma. However, the 27 per cent stake already puts it in charge, as it comes with three of the six seats on Puma's supervisory board and the support of the German company's management.
PPR chief executive Francois-Henri Pinault said: "We guarantee Puma's continuity as an autonomous company within the PPR Group ... The company's [PPR's] strategy is one of organic growth. We don't need to make acquisitions to grow but we will be able to take hold of any other opportunities."
PPR also pledged that the jobs of Puma's 7800 workers were safe.
There have long been rumours that Nike or adidas would swoop on Puma. There was still talk of a counter bid yesterday, with suggestions the €330-a-share ($609) offer price was low. However industry sources said that competitors had effectively been shut out through the acquisition of the stake directly from German billionaires Gunter and Daniela Herz.
Adidas bought Reebok last year for US$3.8 billion ($5.2 billion) but Puma was not keen on becoming part of a larger sportswear group.
The move on Puma was the first major acquisition by PPR under Francois-Henri Pinault, who took over from father Francois Pinault three years ago.
Jochen Zeitz, Puma's chief executive and chairman, said that the company's board "is convinced that PPR ... will be the perfect partner for Puma".
PPR will now push the retail presence of Puma, as it has with Gucci, and expand it internationally. Currently 85 per cent of Puma's business is wholesale. For PPR, Puma may be a better fit than other sportswear businesses as it markets itself as a lifestyle brand.
Last year, it launched a joint footwear collection with Alexander McQueen, also part of the PPR group. The French company said its strategy was to add to its portfolio higher-growth and higher-margin businesses.
Puma, sponsor of Italy's national football team, has quadrupled sales in five years. Last year, revenues amounted to US$2.4 billion, producing a net profit of US$263 million.
Puma was launched in 1948, by Rudolf Dassler, brother of the founder of adidas. Its logo has been worn by stars ranging from Pele, during two successful World Cups, to Boris Becker when he won Wimbledon in 1985.
The Herz brother and sister are believed to have made a profit of about 75 per cent on the Puma stake they bought less than two years ago.
- INDEPENDENT
