In Industry First, PUMA Creates Sustainability Report Podcast Series to Reach Out to Gen-Z

Sports company PUMA has created a podcast series to make its 2022 Sustainability Report more accessible and to reach a wider and younger audience. The RE:GEN REPORTS podcast features next-generation thinkers from six countries and distills the content of the report into 10 podcast episodes, of which the first three are available on all major podcast platforms on June 1.

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Sports company PUMA has created a podcast series to make its 2022 Sustainability Report more accessible and to reach a wider and younger audience. (Photo: Business Wire)

The RE:GEN REPORTS podcast, as well as the recently announced Voices of a Re:Generation project, comes as a direct result of the feedback PUMA received at last year’s Conference of the People, which the company organized to discuss solutions for some of the fashion industry’s most pressing sustainability challenges with Gen-Z representatives, industry peers and experts.

“We believe in collaboration, when it comes to sustainability, whether it is NGOs, brands or consumers, especially young people, who will have to live with the decisions made today,” says Anne-Laure Descours, Chief Sourcing Officer at PUMA. “During last year’s Conference of the People, we saw that we needed to do more to reach out to younger generations when we talk about sustainability. A sustainability report as a podcast has never been done before in our industry, but we believe it is an important step to connect with GEN-Z audiences and open up these important conversations.”

Each episode of RE:GEN REPORTS will discuss one of PUMA’s 10for25 sustainability targets, covering topics from human rights to sustainable material sourcing, to explain why the company set targets in these areas and what progress it has made. An additional seven episodes will be released weekly from June 8 until July 20.

Based on PUMA’s target to train 100,000 direct and indirect staff on women’s empowerment comes the Human Rights episode. Anya Dillard, US-based award-winning activist, model, and social entrepreneur speaks to Viola Wan, PUMA’s Teamhead of Social Sustainability based in China. The episode discusses PUMA’s audit work with factories in its supply chain.

A target to make 100% of all PUMA products safe to use is the basis of the Chemicals episode. This episode features Germany-based sustainable and healthy living vlogger Luke Jaque-Rodney in conversation with Klaas Nuttbohm from ZDHC, an organisation leading the fashion industry to eliminate harmful chemicals. Luke is one of PUMA’s Voices of a Re:Generation, working with PUMA to translate sustainability in a way that makes sense to and engages with the next generation.

The third episode, Circularity, is based on the target to reduce production waste to landfills by at least 50%. US-based up-cycler, and another of PUMA’s Voices of a Re:Generation, Andrew Burgess is joined by PUMA’s Senior Manager Corporate Strategy, Simon Hessel. The two discuss the chemical recycling process and how it’s used in RE:FIBRE, PUMA’s textile to textile recycling project.

Collaboration across the industry is key to unlocking sustainable progress. Throughout the podcast series, PUMA will feature representatives from industry bodies, businesses and NGOs that push brands to ensure more sustainable practises are in place and monitored. Guests on RE:GEN REPORTS include Fair Labour Association’s Chief of Staff, Shelly Han, UNFCCC’s Sector’s Engagement in Climate Action Lead, Lindita Xhaferi-Salihu, Canopy’s Founder and Executive Director, Nicole Rycroft and Leather Working Group’s Traceability Manager, Vanessa Brain.

PUMA has secured the help of several next-generation entrepreneurs and sustainability experts to host each episode such as Amina Shakeel, Fair Labour Association (FLA) student committee member, Bertha Shum, Hong Kong based founder and CEO of Earthero, Ripudaman Bevli, India based environmentalist and social activist, Melissa Tan, Malaysia-based climate action and sustainability advocate, Yumika Hoskin, US-based Pecobag founder, Diandra Marizet US-based intersectional environmentalist, and Monica Buchan-Ng, the Acting Head of Knowledge Exchange at the Centre for Sustainable Fashion in the UK.

PUMA’s sustainability efforts have been recognized several times. In 2022, the brand topped the Business of Fashion sustainability ranking, the platform on living wage financials ranking, and the FTSE4Good ranking within its sectors. It was included in the Corporate Knights global top 100 most sustainable companies ranking, maintained its triple-A ranking with MSCI and its prime status with ISS; two leading sustainability rating agencies. Reuters also ranked it as number two within its sector and, in S&P sustainability benchmarking, PUMA outperformed all other sports brands for the first time since 2010.

For more information about the RE:GEN Reports podcast and to listen to first three episodes, click here. PUMA’s full 2022 Sustainability Report can be accessed here.

PUMA is one of the world’s leading sports brands, designing, developing, selling and marketing footwear, apparel and accessories. For 75 years, PUMA has relentlessly pushed sport and culture forward by creating fast products for the world’s fastest athletes. PUMA offers performance and sport-inspired lifestyle products in categories such as Football, Running and Training, Basketball, Golf, and Motorsports. It collaborates with renowned designers and brands to bring sport influences into street culture and fashion. The PUMA Group owns the brands PUMA, Cobra Golf and stichd. The company distributes its products in more than 120 countries, employs about 20,000 people worldwide, and is headquartered in Herzogenaurach/Germany.

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