PUMA exec hails Jamaica partnership

André Lowe, Senior Staff Reporter

PUMA's sponsorship of double Olympic and World Championships gold medalist and world record holder Usain Bolt is well documented and often overshadows the support that the German-based sports goods manufacturer offers to Jamaica's track-and-field landscape.

Since 2002, PUMA has been the outfit providers for the Jamaica Amateur Athletics Association (JAAA) and also has a sponsorship agreement with the Jamaica Olympic Association.

Along with their support of several local high school programmes, PUMA has also been assisting several track-and-field events such as the Gibson Relays, Inter-Secondary Schools Sports Association (ISSA)/GraceKennedy Boys and Girls' Athletics Championships and the Reggae Marathon.

PUMA's marketing manager for athletics, Pascal Rolling, underlined the company's commitment to the development of athletics, not only at the higher plane, but also at the grassroots level.

here for the long run

"PUMA and Jamaica will be here for the long run, we will be together for many years to come and we will still continue to promote Jamaica and its values as we have been doing in the last ten years," said Rolling during a recent interview with The Gleaner.

"When we decided to enter Jamaica, we said we won't have the usual marketing view on it and just outfit the national team, sign the two best athletes and advertise that. We decided to go deep in the country and make an impact and help the kids, the events, just help to develop athletics and provide support all around," Rolling added, before pointing to what he described as the natural fit between the brand and Jamaica's culture.

"When you look at PUMA, the brand is all about mixing the sports aspect and the lifestyle, and if you look at all the countries in the world in terms of athletics, Jamaica has the same values as PUMA," Rolling reasoned. "It's sports, but the energy is also there; the culture, the music, the fun, it's everybody's second preferred country. Across the world, people will cheer for their home team first and then Jamaica second."

"Because of all these aspects, we decided we needed to have a close relationship with Jamaica because the values of the brand and the country are very similar," he continued.

With a population of less than three million, Jamaica is certainly not the brand's biggest market, however, the value of the nation to the image of the brand is immense.

"Jamaica is not our main market in terms of sales for sure, but Jamaica has certainly helped the image of PUMA across the globe. The fit was natural and the results of Jamaican athletes at the Olympics and World Championships have given a lot of exposure to our programme," Rolling noted.