One of the first things that Christoph Peter-Isenbuerger says is, “I don’t think you understand Puma”. Standing in the corridor of a generic office building, the sportswear brand’s Asia-Pacific head of marketing speeds downstairs into a Puma-branded van, en route to a fashion show downtown.
On the way, he chats about the creativity of his company, how it’s a place that allows personal expression and that this is the basis of why Puma has been able to regain market share and - perhaps more importantly - edge, after languishing for a few decades. Perceptively, Peter-Isenbuerger notices that his spiel, despite its effervescence, is not entirely satisfying.
The conversation makes a swift detour to his involvement in the marketing of hit film Good Bye, Lenin!, and how his musical background prepared him for the corporate world. “Growing up in a musical family - my father was a conductor and my sister is an opera singer - we were always travelling, and there were always all different kinds of people around, so I guess I learned how to talk to everybody; I’m just not shy like that,” he notes.
At the fashion show, two mimes walk out to ’30s big band jazz - the cue that the Rudolph Dassler collection presented is a reinterpretation of vintage styles.
The effect on the audience is unexpected, and Peter-Isenbuerger is delighted. “Ah, what you’ve seen here - this is Puma,” he explains.
“A little bit crazy, and maybe our wide range of products can come across as a little bit chaotic to outsiders sometimes, but we’re definitely different. And very creative.”
“But we make sure that we don’t take this ‘creative chaos’ too far. Puma is an exceptionally well-managed company on every level, with an incredible businessman, Jochen Zeitz, as our CEO,” he says, giving one of the first tangible signs that his charming manner shouldn’t overshadow the savvy media professional his CV suggests.
The same control surfaces when asked about his biggest professional challenges to date. “I’m starting to learn Putonghua, because I think that you’re in trouble in Asia without it,” he says.
Three roundabout, wheedling questions later, there’s still no answer: Peter-Isenbuerger is happy to talk about Puma, Asia-Pacific and the future. He’s forthcoming when using his professional and personal history to illuminate that dialogue, but clear limits apply.
Peter-Isenbuerger sees a bright future for Puma in Asia. With a sizeable presence in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Japan, boasting 14 stores across the three markets, China is now set to be a particular focus for the company.
At present, Puma operates 1,400 retail spots on the mainland, but plans to swell this presence to 1,600 this year.
Aggressive expansion plans; but compared to, for example, rivals adidas’ 2,500 retail spots in the country, Puma remains on a smaller scale.
Such disparities emphasise the importance of creativity in Puma’s bid to outgun its bigger rivals.
“We’re never going to be the people with the biggest budget to spend on advertising, so we depend on having good ideas,” he says, adding that Puma is more “fun, playful and colourful,” compared to its competitors.
For Peter-Isenbuerger, this means conveying the experience of Puma, especially through single-brand concept stores. In most Western markets, lifestyle brands such as Puma are closely linked to the music industry, a synergy that simply doesn’t exist in China. How will Puma go about creating awareness of its brand identity when it can’t rely heavily on artists?
“In every country, there are early adopters who set and spread trends - these people now know each other globally - and they exist in China as well,” he says.
“In Europe, we’d get the creatives, the media people and representatives from Puma in a room together, then we’d get ideas that were both localised and high quality,” notes Peter-Isenbuerger, adding that the brand’s global strategy of working with media AOR ZenithOptimedia, along with small creative boutiques will remain in place.
And the three-strong regional marketing team is expected to expand “soon”, in order to better support local marketing activities.
“I don’t like telling people what to do; I prefer to coach them and let them find the best ideas themselves.”
Peter-Isenbuerger’s CV
2007 Head of Asia-Pacific marketing, Puma
2004 Head of European marketing/ head of global media planning and buying, Puma
2001 Managing director, Carat Munich
2000 Founder/CMO, N-Tree Berlin
1997 Regional marketing manager, Nike Germany
1995 Junior product manager, HF & PhF Reemtsma GmbH, Germany/ Hungary
1993 Junior account manager, BBDO New York
