When Puma decided to revive its dormant Basketball brand after two decades, incumbents were woefully under prepared to defend their territory. Research from the NPD Group found that basketball shoe sales peaked in 2015 at $1.3 billion but were down 13.6% in 2017. “The headline for us when it comes down to why are we getting back into basketball after 20 years is culture culture culture culture culture,” said Adam Petrick, Puma’s global director for brand and marketing. CultureBanx noted that during the 2015 - 2016 season, players generated $333 million in brand value solely on social media. Several rival brands complained to the NBA players union about the possibility of Puma’s allure increasing the price of their next Nike or Adidas shoe deals.

Source: Forbes December 20, 2018 13:41 UTC