We created belief...

PUMA has been at the forefront of sustainability for years. Describing itself as ‘the challenger in sport and sportswear culture’, PUMA was the first company to launch an Environmental Profit & Loss Account (EP&L), the first big sportswear brand to introduce a biodegradable trainer, and among the first to commit to 100% renewable energy. But staying on top in a sector that faces more scrutiny than ever is increasingly difficult, even for a brand with this much experience. So, to inform the next era of their Forever Better sustainability strategy and align with the EU’s new CSRD regulation, PUMA needed a rigorous double and dynamic materiality assessment to show them a clear path forward – and that’s where we came in.

Simplicity and sustainability aren’t always a match made in heaven, but luckily, we’re great matchmakers. We started by immersing ourselves in the world of sports and apparel by interviewing key stakeholders from within and outside of PUMA. This included suppliers and NGOs representing the workers, who were able to share a candid view on both the negative and positive sides of PUMA’s impact. We then subjected the input to an extensive quantitative and qualitative analysis to determine PUMA’s actual and potential impacts, risks, and opportunities.  

Our double materiality assessment identified key insights to shape PUMA’s new sustainability strategy. For instance, the tension between durability and recycled content, and the need to significantly scale the organisation’s circularity efforts, alongside the associated financial opportunities.

After publishing these findings in PUMA’s latest sustainability report, we were invited to participate in PUMA’s Sustainability Stakeholder Dialogue at their German HQ, which convened 75 stakeholders from various groups, to inform the goals within PUMA’s evolved strategy.