(MENAFN- AFP) Puma, the German maker of sportswear and equipment, said Thursday that it was counting on the Olympic games in Rio, the UEFA Euro soccer championships and stars such as Rihanna to boost profits this year.
"We look forward to a great sports year with the Olympic Games in Rio, Copa America in the United States and the UEFA Euro 2016 in France. We feel we are well prepared," said chief executive Bjorn Gulden.
Puma said it had "made progress" in 2015 and expects to further strong growth in 2016, even if it is feeling the pinch of the strong dollar.
"The year ended with a strong fourth quarter showing double-digit reported growth across all regions and all product categories," said CEO Gulden.
"We have seen progress in our performance categories, led by running and training, as well as our lifestyle business where especially our classic styles developed strongly in the second half of the year," Gulden said.
"I am especially proud to see our positive development in the women's business where our co-operation with (pop star) Rihanna and a strong product offering have increased the interest from both retailers and consumers," he said.
Unfortunately, the strong dollar "has had a significant impact on both our gross profit margin and our operating expenses and therefore also on our (underlying) and net earnings," the CEO continued.
Net profit fell by 42 percent to 37.1 million euros ($41 million) in 2015 and underlying or operating profit was down 24.8 percent at 96.3 million euros, while sales grew by 14 percent to 3.387 billion euros.
"But we feel that we as a company have made progress in 2015 and that we have laid the groundwork for high single-digit sales growth as well as improved (underlying) and net earnings in 2016."
- Boom in women's fitness -
Gulden said exchange rates, and the strong dollar in particular, should not be used as a permanent excuse.
Rivals Nike and Adidas were looking to cash in on the boom in women's fitness in China and India as well as the "athleisure" trend where sportswear is influencing what people wear at work.
Puma's offensive in this sector included a contract with pop star Rihanna, who recently presented a sportswear collection at New York's fashion week.
In addition, Puma has also signed a contract with Kylie Jenner, a member of reality TV Kardashian family, in a bid to woo young people on social media.
Jenner's brother-in-law, rap icon Kanye West, cooperates with Puma's arch-rival, Adidas.
Puma is looking to boost profitability and is targeting an increase of between seven and 10 percent in sales this year and net profit in a range of 115-125 million euros.
It is sponsoring five teams in the UEFA soccer championships in France, as well as star athlete Usain Bolt who is taking part in the Olympics in Brazil.
CEO Gulden also said that Puma was considering boosting its presence in the US in the next three to five years, where upstart Under Armour recently overtook Adidas as the sector's number two behind Nike.
On the Frankfurt stock exchange on Thursday, Puma shares were underperforming the overall market, easing 0.16 percent to 183.85 euros.
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