Puma has appointed digital commerce specialist Dusan Hamlin to the newly created role of Vice President of E-Commerce, as the sportswear giant continues to strengthen its direct-to-consumer business.
Hamlin joins with more than 25 years of experience in digital transformation and e-commerce, having previously led digital initiatives at Adidas and Reebok. More recently, he co-founded global performance marketing company M&C Saatchi Performance and digital innovation consultancy This Place, while also serving on the board of Tokyo-listed software company Asteria Corporation.
Reporting to Chief Commercial Officer Matthias Bäumer, Hamlin will oversee the global strategy and commercial direction of Puma’s digital and e-commerce operations.
The appointment follows Puma’s decision in late 2025 to split its direct-to-consumer division into dedicated Global Retail and Global E-Commerce functions, reflecting the growing importance of online sales and digital consumer engagement to the business.
Matthias Bäumer, Chief Commercial Officer at Puma, said: “With Dusan, we have found a proven digital transformation expert to take Puma’s E-Commerce to the next level.”
“Our digital channels have become increasingly important for our business in recent years. Considering this, it was crucial to establish dedicated e-commerce leadership to further develop our strategy and enhance the consumer experience across our website, apps and marketplaces.”
Hamlin added: “We have a massive opportunity at Puma. We continue to significantly improve our platform capabilities, and we are now putting in place a world-class operating model and extended digital team to support our goals. Globally emerging technologies such as social commerce and AI-driven commerce at scale will be a key focus to meet our customers’ needs.”
The appointment comes as Puma continues its strategic transformation under CEO Arthur Hoeld. The company has described 2026 as a transition year as it works to restore growth through cost efficiencies, inventory reductions and improvements to its distribution model, while investing in its digital infrastructure and direct-to-consumer channels.
In its most recent quarterly results, Puma reported a 3.8% increase in direct-to-consumer sales despite an overall decline in revenue, highlighting the growing importance of its owned retail and digital operations as it lays the foundations for a return to growth from 2027.
Since the beginning of the year Puma has been in a recruitment drive, with Hamlin becoming the sixth hire for the company over the last few months. Notably the majority of the new hires have backgrounds with the sportswear brand’s biggest rivals, mainly Adidas and Nike, highlighting Puma’s ambitions to establish itself as a top-three global sportswear brand.
In May the sportswear brand appointed a new Managing Director for Europe, a new Chief Financial Officer, a new lead for its Sportstyle business unit. It also hired a new Senior Vice President of Creative Direction and a new Vice President of Global Wholesale.