Source: Charles Johnson on how PUMA creates a breathing shoe with the help of bacteria – PUMA CATch up
In one of the best posts I wrote in 2017 I gave a lot of insight into PUMA and adidas and where I thought the companies could be headed. Two years later I’m taking the time to revisit this post:
There is a reason I’m revisiting this post. PUMA along with Global Director of Innovation Charles Johnson and a team of Biotechnology engineers are working on shoes that sound like they were born in the lab of an Avenger’s scientist.
In Bioevolution, we use biologically active material that live in symbiosis with the wearer, evolving the shoe upper to produce the most personal ventilation pattern possible. As soon as the wearers’ feet start sweating or heat up, the Microorganisms begin their work. Bioevolution delivers on another, completely new dimension and that is the world of self-manufacturing. The shoe responds to the needs of the individual, who helps to complete the last manufacturing step of the shoe and its functionality.
If you didn’t catch that, here is an analogy, picture yourself running a 5K or a marathon. During that run your feet swell. In basketball you’ve seen NBA players adjusting the fit of their shoes during a game. This is because the natural biomechanics of the human body is that heat causes swelling. We sweat to reduce water retention and to cool the foot/body. When you add an extra layer to the foot with a pair of shoes then the foot becomes warmer much faster. PUMA has been developing a way to use nanotechnology (created with MIT) to basically make a shoe that morphs to your foot in high heat areas.
Boom! I’m sure Suri is incorporating Vibranium as well. Anyway, the discovery of this technology led me to take a moment to reflect on the post I wrote above about PUMA’s growth vs adidas. If you took a moment to read that older post you found that the article was less about PUMA vs adidas and more about both companies relying heavily on lifestyle and fashion to continue driving engagement with their consumers.
In the post I stated that adidas had a chance to maintain their momentum because they were investing in sport in the U.S. The problem is after the initial introduction to adidas’ activites in the States, they stopped and began relying heavily on their connection via fashion. As the tide turned adidas has fallen off. PUMA was relying heavily on Rihanna at the time and I thought they would continue to do so. I didn’t see a benefit in aligning with male rappers because the company was all in on women’s footwear and alienated male consumers who saw PUMA as the brand of Bad Girl Ri Ri.
A funny thing has happened just two years later. I’ve been making videos of the PUMA RS. Why is this important? I only create videos of shoes that have hit resale. I’ve written a number of posts on how resale can be used as a measurement of brand heat. In the last year I’ve only made videos of old adidas footwear bought on clearance. I haven’t made any videos of new footwear because none of the general release shoes are reaching resale for the Three Stripes.
So what happened with PUMA and why are they moving forward in an extremely difficult promotional environment? I’m not saying that all PUMA footwear is selling either because it isn’t. PUMA’s Thunder and Spectra are underperforming and the PUMA Clyde Disrupt basketball shoe isn’t moving either. Which makes my discussion a bit more difficult to prove, but let me work this out.
The PUMA Clyde was marketed incorrectly and designed with the common trend of knit in basketball which I think has led to a lack of interest in basketball footwear. Basketball looks like trainers and if people want trainers, they’ll buy trainers. I’ve discussed this.
The Spectra and Thunder were caught in a shift to chunky Filas and Vans which come in at a better price and in some classic colors like the Yacht Club.
The PUMA RS is the right shoe at the right time, but it also speaks to a fact that I have been stating continuously. When a shoe has retro aesthetics and is informed by performance it tends to resonate more long term with consumers. The RS is chunky, but lightweight and the colorblocking and stories have been great. The shoe is also capable of performance, much like the Huarache for Nike. The shape of the classic has informed the development of new tech and while adidas is relying on the NMD formula with their Nite Jogger and TRESC, both shoes are struggling at retail just as new NMDs are. PUMA is taking the time to continue to innovate and introduce egnaging technology. Above, and below, is the LQDCELL Origin AR. The shoe features a new technology by PUMA.
While the White/Black colorway is much better than the color above, it’s the idea that in the last year PUMA has introduced new basketball silhouettes and now a new cushioning technology. It’s a similar path to what led Nike back from their stumbles in 2016/2017. Throughout 2018 Nike’s introduction of 270, React and now 720, allowed for the rollout of new shoes. With those rollouts came a renewed interest in the Swoosh. adidas during that time failed to update any of their trainers or tech. They did, but no one knows about adidas’ new tech and that’s a problem that requires its own post.
In a post I wrote in 2017:
I explained that adidas had a problem. At the time the company was riding high. My prediction was correct that adidas would see a considerable slowdown in general release footwear. The issue is the larger market seemed to overlook that the amazing growth the brand had shown would hide their stumbles because even as sales slowed for me and retailers, the amount of sales in store on boosted numbers which still showed growth, but that’s a different discussion.
PUMA is doing something smart and more longterm. Innovation and performance informs fashion. If you see this statement anywhere else, it was borrowed from me. It’s my mantra that a company in sportswear cannot rely solely on fashion. The company has to give just as much energy to performance at every pricepoint as they do to shoes made for hype and fashion.
It’s looking like I was wrong about PUMA. Use the source link to read more about the Bacteria built, biotech inspired design from Puma.