Some days ago, we leaked the next generations of Puma's two main football boot silos - the Puma Future Netfit and the Puma One. Close followers of the German brand might have noticed that they have introduced a release rhythm around two years ago that brings us new generations very often...
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January & July - Puma Releases Next-Gen Boots Every Six Months
Puma is releasing new generations every six months - we get a new generation of both the Puma Future Netfit and Puma ONE at the start of the year and in the middle of the year (January & July).
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The second uncommon thing is that Puma's naming of their boots is strange. The new generations that come out at the start of the year are called after the year (i.e. Puma Future Netfit 19 | January 2019 - third generation), while those ones that are released in Summer are called after the generation (i.e. Puma Future Netfit 4 - July 2019 - fourth generation).
Adidas is releasing new generations every year (after 12 months), while Nike is more flexible - new generations are most often released after 18 months.
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Puma is keeping the same elements for their boots more than for one generation. The sole plates are often the same for three generations. New generations from Nike do always change both the upper and the sole plate, while Adidas often keeps the sole plates for two generations (changes the outsoles after two years).
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There are some advantages and disadvantages with releasing new boot generations every six months. An advantage is that Puma can react faster to new design trends / technologies, while a disadvantage is that customers might be confused.
Pros and cons of Releasing New-Gen Football Boots Every Six Months / More Often
+ Possibility to react very fast to new design trends / technologies+ Might lead to a faster / more risky development
+ Makes people possibly more interested
- Makes it harder for players who want the same boots if they were happy with them
- Customer might be confused
- Often no big tech changes compared to previous generation
We think that there is not such a thing like a perfect time frame about how often a brand should release a new generation - a lifespan of just six months for a generation is too less for us.
What do you think of Puma releasing new generations of their soccer cleat silos every half a year? Let us know in the comments below.