Image Courtesy of PUMA
December 6, 2024
Should PUMA Be Opening a Flagship on the Las Vegas Strip?
PUMA opened its second U.S. flagship in Las Vegas, becoming the latest brand to establish a showcase store in “Sin City.”
The German sportswear brand’s first U.S. flagship, measuring 18,000 square feet across two floors, opened in New York City in 2019.
The Las Vegas flagship, measuring 25,000 square feet across three floors, is located at the BLVD Las Vegas, a new 400,000-square-foot mixed-use development on The Strip. PUMA’s store will include a number of “immersive and interactive features,” including a Motorsports Zone — PUMA is the official sponsor of Formula 1 races — and the PUMA Arcade, which “features RUN, GOLF, and SOCCER experiences.”
In a statement, CEO Arne Freundt said the flagship supports PUMA’s “brand elevation” strategy, reaching both U.S. and international consumers. He said, “I believe that our new Las Vegas Flagship is essential for conveying the true character of our PUMA Brand and for creating an immersive, interactive shopping experience as it will redefine in-person shopping by seamlessly merging sports performance, latest fashion trends, and technology.”
The move comes as Las Vegas has started adding professional sports leagues, starting with hockey’s Vegas Golden Knights in 2017, followed by the Las Vegas Aces in the WNBA and Las Vegas Raiders in the NFL. The MLB’s Las Vegas Athletics will arrive from Oakland in 2028.
Bob Philion, president of PUMA North America, said, “Las Vegas is a booming sports city that attracts millions of visitors each year and is a global destination for entertainment and fashion.”
Other leases recently signed for the BLVD retail complex include a 25,000-square-foot location for Adidas and 20,000 square feet for H&M.
Other recent flagships opening on the Strip this year include ones from the Japanese streetwear brand BAPE and Western boot brand Ariat. Lids, the sports fan apparel store, opened a two-story, 12,000-square-foot flagship on the legendary boulevard in 2022.
“Opening our newest and largest Lids store to date in the heart of Las Vegas was an obvious choice for us as the area is a shopping destination known around the world,” said Britten Maughan, president at Lids, at the time.
With its appeal to affluent tourists, Vegas has established itself as a luxury shopping mecca, bolstered by the openings of The Forum Shops at Caesars Palace in 1992, the Grand Canal Shoppes at The Venetian Resort in 1999, Miracle Mile Shops in 2000, and The Shops at Crystals in 2005.
Janet Lafevre, senior marketing manager at the Grand Canal Shoppes, said more than 90% of the mall’s shoppers are tourists. She told the Las Vegas Review-Journal, “Our luxury retailers really thrive with the international customer that comes in, and that’s a real focus for us.”
Marie Driscoll, managing director of luxury and fashion at Coresight Research, told Retail Brew about the appeal of Las Vegas shopping: “If you’re there on business for a conference, it’s a great place to say, ‘Okay, well let me just do a little bit of luxury shopping,’ and if you’re there on holiday, to enjoy the shows and [gamble], you are in a different world. The sun never sets, the restaurants and gambling tables are open all night long. You walk out feeling like, ‘Where can I spend my winnings? Or maybe I better spend something before I lose more money.’”
While plenty of adult entertainment can be found on the Strip, the arrival of sports franchises has continued to expand the “Disneyfication” of the Strip, with more family-friendly options arriving for visitors. Brendan Bussmann, managing partner at B Global, a consulting firm that serves the gaming industry, recently told CNN, “The only way to grow a destination is to appeal to more groups.”
Discussion Questions
Does it make sense for PUMA to open a flagship on the Las Vegas Strip?
What should Las Vegas’ next steps be in its evolution as a retail shopping destination?
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Las Vegas is a magnet for tourists from around the world, which will provide exposure for the Puma brand. Vegas is also a place where entertainment and immersive fun are valued, and shopping is firmly on the agenda. So, in many ways, it’s a great location for Puma’s new store.
“Appropriate” – or not – seems like an odd word choice to describe this move (I assume the question is really whether/not it makes good business sense, not some kind of values statement). As always I trust the retailer has done their homework, and knows – far more I ever would – about what they want to get out of this; would Vegas be my Silver Medalist? probably not…but that shouldn’t mean much.
With 95% the visitors being tourists, it makes perfect sense for international brands to put flagships on the Las Vegas strip.
These brands gain the benefits of boosting an image to a higher level simply by having a presence on the most lit, and arguably, the most spectacular street in the world. The “billboard” effect is unmatched. The surroundings make for impressive image-making, advertising, and showboating.
However, professional sports franchises in Las Vegas have little to do with making Vegas itself the right place for Puma flagships, or any other athletic brands. Once again, only 5% of the shoppers are locals, and at best, they will buy licensed sports merchandise, i.e., Raiders jerseys and hats, for their own Vegas teams. The other 95% will purchase licensed merchandise representing their own teams but not because Vegas happens to have teams of their own.
The secondary picture is more interesting to me. PUMA’s strategic expansion into Las Vegas represents more than just another flagship retail footprint meant to grow one’s brand – it’s a masterclass in understanding how destination retail is evolving in the experience economy. Think of the forces that are converging and the crossover impact they’re having. Professional sports, tourism, and experiential retail in Las Vegas creates a unique ecosystem where brands can experiment with immersive concepts that might shape the direct of its global trajectory. What’s particularly fascinating is how PUMA’s decision reflects a broader shift in retail strategy, where flagships are becoming less about pure sales and more about brand storytelling in high-traffic locations that can deliver both domestic and international consumer insights. Growing up in NYC, I saw this with Macys’ historical flagship Heralds Square store which is still serving its purpose some 70 years later.
From an ROI perspective, absolutely not (the cpsf on Las Vegas retail is astronomical). From a brand awareness perspective, absolutely (millions of eyeballs on your logo). As such, the Puma leadership team must decide how expensive and how long they want this ‘commercial’ to run to determine if the store is appropriate to undertake.
The BLVD is still under construction, replacing the Hawaiian Marketplace that was razed a few years ago. It’s a free standing mall, and unlike many other Las Vegas shopping centers, the BLVD will forgo high-end designer shops and cater to mid-market consumers, something that’s much needed on the Strip.
Do I think it makes sense for PUMA to open a flagship store on the Vegas Strip? I do. The only other big name brand sports store on the Strip is Nike, and it’s located at the far back corner of the Forum Shops at Caesars. That and store is tired.
H&M recently vacated its huge location at the Forum Shops and is joining PUMA at the BLVD. Both retailers will easily make a splash in this highly visible, mid-Strip location.
And by the way, anyone who thinks there is a “Disneyfication” with family-friendly options happening on the Strip hasn’t been to Vegas lately.
With the high traffic rates in Las Vegas, Puma made the right decision. It takes $ and persistence to build a brand that rivals Nike or Adidas.
I remember when (although I never saw or read any proof of this) the Nike Store in Chicago, back in the 90’s was the #1 tourist attraction in the city….a city with numerous museums, sports teams, a waterfront, great restaurants and a zoo…taking that at face value, Puma should have opened in Vegas decades ago!
PUMA’s new flagship on the Las Vegas Strip is a smart move, tapping into the city’s growing sports and entertainment scene. With thousands of tourists and sports fans passing through, this location puts PUMA in the spotlight, creating a great opportunity to increase brand awareness and engage with a broader audience.
High traffic, high visibility….Why not?