Too often, the voices of the generation most impacted by climate change are listened to but not heard. We wanted to change that and create a platform that would amplify young voices and give them a way to hold the our brand and business to account.

There is a crucial need for a two-way dialogue on sustainability; to communicate PUMA’s industry-leading progress, but more importantly, to listen to the demands of its target audience.

Conference of the People, powered by PUMA was a globally accessible platform for our audience to share their concerns, demands and dreams for a more sustainable planet, while showcasing the progress that the brand has made.

We wanted to create a moment that allowed PUMA to be more transparent than ever – and in doing so, raise the bar for industry transparency in the future.

COP 26. “Conference of the Parties”. Governments, industry, pressure groups and NGOs meet to discuss the future of the planet. With one missing voice: the people.

Conference of the People, powered by PUMA, created a public platform for accountability, conversation and expectations in sustainability. And if ‘Conference’ makes you think of Powerpoint and formality, think again.

Gen Zers shared their demands. We shared the complex and deeply technical nature of what real progress demands.

We invited experts on stage, including PUMA’s CEO, to demonstrate that PUMA is willing to have tough conversations. To challenge the industry, we harnessed the passion and experience of sustainability influencers with dominant GenZ followings by passing them the mic.

To engage Gen Z further, we transformed the space into an immersive, audio-visual experience, all broadcast online for a global audience.

No other fashion brand had ever opened-up in this transparent and authentic way before.

Our PR strategy was simple. Let's apply the same levels of creativity as we would to a new trainer drop to engage a Gen Z audience in our sustainability story.

Our key audience was young people aged 18-25 who felt they didn't have a platform to voice their concerns about fashion and the environment. We also wanted to reach corporate audiences and the wider industry, to share PUMA’s knowledge and inspire.

This meant making Gen Z a co-conspirator in the platform and ensuring their voices were the loudest. It meant bringing them together with industry experts in a unique meeting of minds. For the rest of the industry, this event marked an opportunity to learn and be inspired.

What made this approach unique was our focus on transparency. Our panels contained a diverse mix of PUMA experts, Gen Z advocates, industry and NGO representatives, to show a complete, balanced picture.

1 day. 5 conversations. This was the red thread that we weaved through the entire campaign which sat across paid, earned, owned and shared.

In order to facilitate real conversations, we needed real voices. Gen Z renegades positioned at the intersection between fashion and sustainability. We enlisted a diverse range of young talent from passionate sustainability influencers, to climate storytellers whose profiles frequent the likes of The Sunday Times to drive our paid PR activity. All led by our hero talent, Cara Delevingne and Naomie Harris who drove interest amongst national media across the UK, US and worldwide and facilitated organic, earned coverage.

We scattered communications with the media across the 10-month campaign execution. A launch moment across business and consumer media. A talent announcement to raise the profile of the event, and a formal invitation to UK based media to attend and see the day in person.

Our phased communications approach that made clear PUMA’s authentic and determined ambition to open the floor to greater, transparent discussion on sustainability caught the eye of its competitors. At the event, Under Armour CEO, NGOs and Fashion Councils were ready and eager to join in on the conversation to drive change.

The news of Conference of the People, powered by PUMA earned a reach of over 11.8 billion through 886 pieces of online editorial coverage, and 72.6 million through social media. This was achieved through a combination of both 22 media personnel and 43 social media influencers sitting in amongst our 198 total attendees.

We live-streamed the full day event to a live audience of 3,400, with 2,300 tuning in days after the event to catch up on the conversations. In total we recorded 5,700 total livestreams.

The industry perception of PUMA changed, the brand was awarded Footwear News’ Sustainable Leadership Award 2 months post event and PUMA earned a presence at COP27 in Egypt in 2022, where the impact the event had on PUMA’s internal stakeholders was discussed.

The event brought us face-to-face with some hard truths. Sustainability is too complex, uninteresting and has a bad rep for deceiving consumers. This led PUMA to launch Voices of a RE:GENERATION in 2023, an industry-first initiative that brings next-generation thinkers into the core of sustainability strategy. Offers them a seat at the table of PUMA’s sustainability decision making and translates this in a way that makes sense. Transparently, authentically, Gen Z.