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Puma Hires A$AP Rocky as Creative

Director of Formula 1 Partnership
The acclaimed rapper and frequent fashion collaborator will design a capsule
collection to be released at the Las Vegas Grand Prix in November. In future
seasons, he will have wider creative control over the brand’s multi-year licensing
deal with F1.

A$AP Rocky will release his first limited edition Puma and F1 apparel and accessories collection at the inaugural Las Vegas Grand
Prix in late November. (Courtesy)

By DANIEL-YAW MILLER
23 October 2023

BoF PROFESSIONAL

Fashion’s convergence with the world of sport continues.

This week, it comes in the form of A$AP Rocky’s appointment as creative director of Puma’s
Formula 1 partnership. The German sportswear giant — which signed a landmark multi-year
licensing deal to exclusively produce and sell F1 apparel, footwear and merch in May — tapped
the standout American hip-hop-artist-turned-fashion tastemaker to expand its audience and
capitalise on the growing intersection between streetwear and motorsports.
The first products of the partnership will come in the form of a limited edition Puma and F1
collection of accessories and apparel, set to be released at the inaugural Las Vegas Grand Prix
in late November, according to Puma chief executive Arne Freundt. Teaser images show Rocky
sporting a co-branded black tracksuit from the current Puma-F1 collection, as well as racing
gloves and a pair of red, orange and white Puma “Inhale” sneakers.

“These are some key silhouettes I’ve been starting out with, trialling different designs and
techniques,” Rocky told BoF. “I’m focussed on seamlessly blending in these classic streetwear
looks without it feeling forced or tacky.”

Next year, Rocky will design a series of capsule collections linked to high-profile F1 races
throughout the 2024 season. He will also be tasked with hosting in-person activations at each
of the races, as well as managing the marketing for each release.

By the 2025 season, Puma plans for Rocky to have wider creative control over the entire
Puma-F1 partnership, providing creative input for the production of racewear, fanwear and
more fashion-forward collections.

“Rocky is, in my view, one of the greatest cultural forces of our time — his influence goes far
beyond music,” said Freundt, emphasising Rocky’s track record of work in the motorsports
world through his creative agency AGWE, which includes an apparel collaboration with
Mercedes-Benz in March last year.

Puma will benefit from the association with one of fashion’s most coveted collaborators at the
height of his cultural relevance. In 2016, he was tapped as the face of Dior’s menswear business
and has since released co-designed collaborations with the likes of JW Anderson and Guess
Originals. More recently, he has generated a new wave of attention from being in a relationship
with Rihanna; the pair appeared on the cover of British Vogue’s March 2023 issue.

Rocky is currently putting the finishing touches to the partnership’s first campaign, which
explores American automotive culture and its intersection with streetwear, and will launch
ahead of the Las Vegas race, he said.

His appointment comes as the once-niche sport booms in popularity worldwide, turbocharged
in recent years by documentaries such as “Drive to Survive,” a Netflix series that gave fans a
behind-the-scenes look at the life of drivers and team principals. The star power of Lewis
Hamilton — along with the rise of newer drivers including Pierre Gasly and China’s Zhou
Guanyu — has also helped attract a younger, more diverse fanbase to the sport.

“I’m just really glad that what was once a really traditional, conservative industry is ready to
open up and explore new things, especially when it comes to fashion,” Rocky said.
F1 races have now become a marketing goldmine for fashion brands. While Puma won the
race to secure the licensing deal for official F1 apparel and merch, many other brands have
piled into the sport through team sponsorship. LVMH-owned Tag Heuer has a partnership
with the championship-winning Red Bull F1 team, while Boss provides performance clothing
and casualwear for the drivers and support staff of the Aston Martin F1 team. Meanwhile,
Berluti is the official formalwear partner of the Alpine F1 team.

Race weekends are packed full of A-list celebrities: Michelle Obama and Michael Jordan were
special guests at the Miami Grand Prix in May, while Shakira was spotted at July’s British
Grand Prix along with Brad Pitt and British actor Damson Idris.

November’s inaugural Las Vegas race — part of which will take place along the city’s famous
boulevard — is set to be F1′s largest pop culture showcase to date.

“It’s going to be like the Super Bowl on wheels,” Freundt said.

F1 is an important category for Puma, which generates a bulk of its revenue from producing
performance apparel for niche but growing global sports, including motorsports and cricket,
underserved by its larger competitors Nike and Adidas. While it doesn’t break out sales for its
motorsport category, Puma reported €33.8 million ($35.8 million) in royalty and commission
income last year, an increase of 41.6 percent compared to 2021. The company attributed the
gain to “good business development in the motorsport division, after Formula 1 fans returned
to racetracks this year,” it said in its annual report.

In September, Puma announced a partnership with British rapper Skepta to create “Futuro,” a
co-designed line of sneakers and apparel. Earlier this year, the company said it has brought
back its collaboration with Rihanna’s Fenty label.

“We’re very serious about elevating our brand, and these three partners are very strong
testimonials of our ambition,” Freundt said. “It’s all about pushing the boundaries of sport
through a fashion lens.”
FURTHER READING

How Fashion Entered the Formula One Race

A new owner, media-friendly strategy and an upcoming Brad Pitt film have helped catapult Formula
One into the cultural spotlight. For brands, there are untapped opportunities in the sport – “like a Super
Bowl every weekend”.

Inside the Big Business of Styling Athletes

NBA stars and footballers are increasingly leaning on a network of powerful style consultants to help
them shape their personal brands away from their day jobs, laying the groundwork for lucrative brand
deals.

Shaquille O’Neal Named President of Basketball at Reebok

Reebok has named NBA legends Shaquille O’Neal and Allen Iverson as president of basketball and vice
president of basketball, respectively, the brand said in a statement Thursday.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

DANIEL-YAW MILLER
Daniel-Yaw Miller is Senior Editorial Associate at The Business of Fashion. He is based in
London and covers menswear, streetwear and sport.

© 2023 The Business of Fashion. All rights reserved. For more information read our Terms & Conditions

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