UNIVERSITY “LUCIAN BLAGA”,

SIBIU
FACULTY OF ECONOMIC
SCIENCES

SPECIALIZATION : MARKETING
ANUL 1, ID

STUDENT: ȘTIRBU ALINA-MARIA

ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROJECT
“PUMA” BRAND

PROFESOR COORDONATOR:
CONF. UNIV. DR. VINȚEAN
ADRIANA
 INTRODUCTION

My name is Știrbu Alina-Maria, based on Cisnădie. I am a student on

the first year at Economics University Lucian Blaga, specialization
Marketing.

My passion and occupation is the graphic design. I started to learn about

this almost a year ago and this what i want to do further, thing that leads me
to the reason why I chose this specialization. I thing that is going to be
useful and somehow they work together.

For this referece theme i chose to write about „Puma SE”, branded as
„Puma”, a German multinational corporation that designs and manufactures
athletic and casual footwear, apparel and accessories and I chose these
brand, because personally like it very much and I consider it as qualitative.
 PRESENTATION OF THE BRAND:

“Sport has the power to

transform and empower us. As one of the world’s leading sports brands, it’s
only natural that we want to stand on the same playing field as the fastest
athletes on the planet. To achieve that, the PUMA brand is based on the very
values that make an excellent athlete.
Puma SE, branded as Puma, is a German multinational corporation that
designs and manufactures athletic and casual footwear, apparel and
accessories, which is headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria,
Germany. Puma is the third largest sportswear manufacturer in the world.
The company was founded in 1948 by Rudolph Dassler. In 1924, Rudolph
and his brother Adolf “Adi” Dassler had jointly formed the company
Gebrüder Dassler Schuhfabrik (Dassler Brothers Shoe Factory). The
relationship between the two brothers deteriorated until the two agreed to
split in 1948, forming two separate entities, Adidas and Puma. Both
companies are currently based in Herzogenaurach, Germany.

As of 2017, Puma SE employs more than 13,000 people worldwide

and distributes its products in more than 120 countries. Following the split
from his brother, Rudolf originally registered the newly established company
as Ruda (derived from Rudolf Dassler, as Adidas was based on Adi
Dassler), but later changed the name to Puma. Puma's earliest logo
consisted of a square and beast jumping through a D, which was
registered, along with the company's name, in 1948. Puma's shoe and
clothing designs feature the Puma logo and the distinctive "Formstrip"
which was introduced in 1958.
 1948-1951

On the debut logo, a predatory cat jumps over the letter “D.” This is a
direct reference to the name Dassler.

1951-1958

In 1951, designers placed the drawing inside the hexagon. In the

initial version, a simple black geometric figure was used. In 1957, a double
black-and-white contour was added to it, and the word “Puma” appeared
under a predatory cat. In 1958, the background turned white. A wide frame
was decorated with the inscription “Rudolf Dassler Schuhfabrik.”

1958-1968

In 1958, the manufacturer deviated from the classical concept. Over

the next ten years, his emblem was a football boot, complemented by the
phrase “Puma form-strip.” The thick, sans-serif font was chosen for the first
word and elegant italics for the second. So the company noted the creation
of an element of lateral support (Formstrip) in the form of three stripes on
sports shoes.

1968-1970

Rudolf Dassler felt that the boots did not fully reveal the character of
Puma. After all, a predatory cat is the embodiment of dexterity, stamina,
flexibility, speed, and strength. He wanted to change the existing logo and
commissioned the cartoonist Lutz Backes, with whom his son Gerd Dassler
studied, to do so.

The artist first drew the body of a black panther, and then added the
legs and head of a cougar to it, so that the image as much as possible
meets the requirements of the customer. The owner of the factory offered to
pay a commission fee: 1 cent for each product sold with the Puma logo. But
Lutz refused and asked for a one-time payment of 600 marks. Together
with the money, he was presented with a gift: a sports bag and a pair of
shoes.

1970-1974
 In 1970, the silhouette of the cougar changed slightly. Now it is white
with a black outline. The figure has become more dynamic because the
animal is depicted in a jump.

1974-1976

On the emblem of 1974, the inscription “Puma” appeared again. The

font resembles the 1958 version: bold, quadrangular letters with rounded
edges. The predatory cat is repainted black and is located on the right. This
trademark had several modifications, both with a rectangular frame and
without it.

1976-1978

In 1976, experiments on graphics continued. The developers got rid of

the cougar, leaving only the name of the company. Moreover, the font was
completely changed: now the letters are oblique, “p” seems to be lowercase
due to the long vertical stroke. Below is a Formstrip.

1978-1980

Two years after the unsuccessful image change, the company

returned to the classic logo design. Now the cougar hangs over the
inscription as if trying to jump over it.

1980-1988

In 1980, the “Formstrip” was again added to the word – this time
translucent.

1988-present

The developers returned the 1978 emblem without a curving strip.

The main palette includes black and white. But there is an additional one –
with a bright shade of red.

It is quite logical that the Puma emblem is the silhouette of this

predatory beast. The animal is shown jumping, which indicates the
sportswear and footwear manufacturer’s main goal: to promote an active
lifestyle. The trademark applied to tags and products perfectly reflects this
idea because the cougar is incredibly fast: it can reach record speed while
running. The artists paid attention to detail, drawing the ears, tail, paws, and
smooth outlines of the body.

The modern typeface, which is presented on the Puma logo,

appeared in 1974. The designers developed it, especially for this company,
using a strict bold grotesque as an example. This typeface was later used
as the basis for the My Puma family of free sans-serif fonts by Samuel
Park.

The monochrome palette enhances the minimalism of the logo. The

standard color scheme contains only black and white, but there are
versions with a bright red shade that makes the picture and lettering stand
out effectively.

Puma offers for Basketball, Football, Running, Training and Fitness,

Golf, Motorsports and Sportstyle. It has sponsored a number of legendary
athletes, including Diego Maradona, Johan Cruyff, Boris Becker among
others.

Currently, international footballers, including Neymar, Marco Reus,

David Silva and many more are sporting Puma football boots.

In conclusion, the evolution of the brand “PUMA” from 1948 till today
was an amazing one, being known nowdays as one of the world’s leading
sports brands.

Bibliography

Puma (brand) - Wikipedia

Puma Logo | The most famous brands and company logos in the
world (logos-world.net)
PUMA® - This is PUMA