PUMA has appointed Marcia Dos Santos as vice president of its Core business unit, effective July 15, 2026, as the sports company continues reorganizing its operations around dedicated Sportstyle and Core teams.
The position is newly created and will place Dos Santos in charge of a business that PUMA describes as a central commercial engine for the company.
She will report directly to Chief Brand Officer Maria Valdes.
Dos Santos brings more than 20 years of experience in the global sports industry, including leadership roles spanning merchandising, commercial strategy and go-to-market execution.
She joins PUMA from Nike, where she most recently served as vice president of merchandising for women’s products across Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
During her career, Dos Santos has worked across women’s, men’s and children’s product categories and has managed commercial initiatives in multiple regions.
Her experience includes developing product assortments, coordinating merchandising strategies and ensuring that products are positioned effectively across retail and wholesale channels.
As vice president of Core, Dos Santos will be responsible for advancing the part of PUMA’s business focused on broadly accessible products with significant commercial reach.
The Core organization is expected to play an important role in driving volume, supporting retail partnerships and ensuring that PUMA offers products suited to a wide range of consumers and markets.
Dos Santos will also be tasked with building teams and strengthening the processes used to move products from development through market launch.
Strong go-to-market execution requires coordination among design, product development, merchandising, marketing, sales and regional teams.
Her background across product categories and markets is expected to help PUMA create more consistent strategies while responding to differences in consumer demand across regions.
The appointment forms part of PUMA’s broader transformation efforts.
The company has established separate teams for its Sportstyle and Core businesses to provide each area with more focused leadership, clearer accountability and dedicated commercial strategies.
Sportstyle typically centers on products that connect athletic performance with fashion, lifestyle and cultural trends.
The Core business serves as a broader commercial platform, supporting products intended to reach large customer groups and generate consistent sales across markets.
By separating the two organizations, PUMA can develop distinct approaches to assortment planning, pricing, distribution and marketing while maintaining coordination under its broader brand strategy.
Dos Santos’ merchandising expertise will be particularly relevant as PUMA seeks to match product availability with demand and improve performance across retail channels.
Merchandising leaders evaluate which products should be offered, how assortments should differ by market and how inventory should be allocated among stores, digital platforms and wholesale partners.
Effective merchandising can help increase full-price sales, reduce excess inventory and ensure that marketing investments are supported by the right products in the right locations.
Dos Santos also brings experience in women’s sportswear, an area that remains strategically important for global athletic brands.
Her most recent role at Nike involved leading women’s merchandising across a diverse region that includes mature European markets and rapidly developing consumer markets in the Middle East and Africa.
That experience may help PUMA identify opportunities to expand participation among women while coordinating those efforts with its wider Core portfolio.
The company expects Dos Santos to use her commercial background and team-building experience to advance the Core organization during its next phase.
Her appointment gives PUMA a senior leader with experience at one of the world’s largest sportswear companies and a record of managing products across categories, consumer groups and geographic markets.
KEY QUOTE:
“Throughout her career, Marcia has delivered strong commercial results across regions and product categories for Women, Men and Kids, demonstrating outstanding go-to-market and merchandising skills. With her broad industry experience, strong commercial track record and ability to build successful teams, she is the right leader to take our Core business, PUMA’s commercial engine, to the next level.”
Maria Valdes, Chief Brand Officer of PUMA
