Endorsements are commonplace within the sneaker industry, and brands shell out big bucks to get the freshest faces and most-popular teams to wear their products. Athletes, rappers, and entertainers all have caught the eyes of Nike, adidas, and Under Armour, and the companies are willing to pay accordingly for the talent they're acquiring. One brand that has made a splash in recent times for its expenditures is Puma, which recently entered into deals with Rihanna and Arsenal.
The money that Puma has spent on the singer and the football club has paid dividends for the brand so far, with its sales increasing 7.6 percent this year to €772.7, according to Fashionista. This increase hasn't come without a price, though, as the website goes on to say, "The brand reported Friday that its operating expenditures were up 20.4 percent to €357.4 for the second quarter, largely because of its partnerships with Rihanna and Arsenal."
If you're keeping score, that's a net-loss of €3.3 million. But with the resurgence of Puma over the past year or so — which is in part thanks to gaining traction from retroing good sneakers and having them sell — it's likely that these partnerships will pay off in the future.
