Longtime Puma Exec Adam Petrick Is Exiting as Company Moves Marketing Group to Germany
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Puma global chief brand officer Adam Petrick, whose career at the German athletic powerhouse spans more than two decades, is exiting the company.
Petrick is departing as Puma reorganizes its global marketing organization. The company’s new plan includes moving the group to its headquarters in Herzogenaurach, Germany.
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In a statement released today, Puma said Petrick has decided not to transition to Europe, and instead will pursue new challenges outside of the brand. The executive will remain with Puma until the end of the year to ensure a smooth transition.
“I would like to thank Adam Petrick for his significant contribution to Puma’s success during his more than 20-year tenure with Puma,” Arne Freundt, chief executive officer of Puma, said in a statement.
Petrick’s career at Puma spans 23 years, and during his career he held several brand and marketing leadership roles. According to LinkedIn, his first role with the company was e-commerce and digital project manager in 2000.
Throughout his run with Puma, Petrick was a driving force behind several defining moments.
He was integral in defining the brand’s partnership with Jay-Z and Roc Nation Sports, and helped reestablish Puma’s focus on women in both sport and fashion starting in 2014 via partnerships with the likes of Rihanna, Selena Gomez and several other high-profile names.
Petrick was also critical in Puma’s return to basketball in 2018. The reentry into the sport included the signing of several promising NBA rookies and popular league veterans, and has since expanded to the WNBA. Aside from basketball, he also oversaw Puma’s ambitious return to performance run in 2021.
Additionally, Petrick helped steer Puma’s positioning in social justice, equality and inclusivity within sports through the Reform platform in 2017, established the brand’s commitment to sustainable business practices with the “Forever Better” marketing platform in 2021 and established its Web3 business in 2022. Last September, he helped lead the charge on the brand’s major New York Fashion Week return.
Petrick will be succeeded by Richard Teyssier, the company’s current regional GM of Europe, who will assume the global brand and marketing director role, effective July 1. Teyssier joined Puma in 2010, and most recently served as general manager of Europe. Puma confirmed Teyssier will continue to lead the region until his successor is announced.
Teyssier will report directly to Freundt.
“With Richard Teyssier, we have found the ideal candidate to drive Puma’s brand elevation strategy in the future. He is not only a true marketing specialist who comes with a strong expertise in brand management. He is also an integral part of our Puma family and knows the business inside out from his more than 12 years of general management at Puma France and Puma Europe,” Freundt said in a statement.
With the reorganization, Puma’s brand management and marketing operations departments teams will relocate from Boston to Herzogenaurach, effective July 1. Puma said the marketing organization of Puma North America “will be further strengthened by the assignment of responsibilities for local sports marketing and local partnership management in order to elevate the brand in the U.S. market.”
“Puma’s brand is at the heart of our company’s success. Yet, our analyses clearly show that Puma has significant opportunities to leverage the full potential of its brand. This is why relentlessly elevating our brand is one of our key strategic priorities,” Freundt said in a statement. “With the global marketing organization being based in proximity to our key central functions at the HQ, we will lay the organizational foundation for this. It will ensure consistency and speed up decision making … to make us even more consumer centric. With the new setup, we will be able to drive more impactful campaigns to further establish our brand in the minds of our consumers.”
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