As running groups gather once again across the continent and entries for the 2025 Great Race attract eager runners, product releases and collabs are becoming more frequent in the sports industry. The one between global giant Puma and the small Danish brand Saysky is particularly eye-catching and interesting.
Spring has started in Europe, and with it, the running season has kicked off with a collab that has in a short time really made a buzz in the running business as giant Puma has joined forces with the Danish running community and brand Saysky.
On Thursday, March 13, the Puma x Saysky collection will be released, featuring 15 different running products, including three shoes (Deviate Nitro 3 daily trainer, Deviate Nitro Elite 3 race shoe and the ForeverRun Nitro 2) with which the big German brand has made common cause with the small but locally strong running brand and community Saysky.
From the design of the Puma X Saysky collection, it’s almost obvious what they’re aiming for. In a Puma-esque way, both brands have thrown themselves into the world of Asics and designed/borrowed/stolen inspiration from one of the most iconic Asian artists, Katsushika Hokusai (born 1760), creator of the famous Ukiyo-e work The great wave of Kanagawa (1831). The Puma x Saysky collection also includes a huge hoodie with a cougar showing its teeth, the design of which is also directly reminiscent of the Asics sub-brand Onitsuka Tiger. However, as the years go by, new consumers may not always have the same nostalgic thoughts as previous generations of runners.
Wave designs and howling cougars challenging the biggest running brand is one thing. But what makes this collab truly interesting is that Puma has invested so much in a collaboration with a relatively small brand.
Saysky started as an idea in 2010, when founder and professional windsurfer Lars C. Pedersen wanted to try triathlon. Pedersen didn’t think the running clothes on the market suited him, and like so many other entrepreneurs, he took matters into his own hands and started his own brand. Saysky’s first products saw the light of day in 2013. More and more products were added, and in 2016/17 Pedersen’s brand won the ISPO Brandnew award and started to gain international attention. Saysky also expanded the brand to include social runs and running clothes for regular running and started organizing races. Now Saysky’s fan base can participate in everything from sweaty long runs, like COPRUN, a longer city race, to relaxed runs on weekends in the form of Saysky & Friends, a genuine Danish social run where the whole gang finishes with an after-run at a local Copenhagen bar. Despite, or because of, the relaxed atmosphere at Saysky, its collections and engaged running community have grown since the start almost 15 years ago.
It’s not that Saysky is too small – having 80,000 followers on Instagram is a major achievement for a running community in Denmark. But for Puma, that’s simply a bonus. It’s more the mentality of the brand that made Puma fall for the Danish companion. Puma wants to be the hungry challenger to Nike and Adidas, despite being top three in many sports worldwide.
The Puma x Saysky collection goes on sale online at puma.com and saysky.com and in Puma’s flagship store on Thursday, March 13. And, of course, the Danes will be kicking things off with a social run, in daring outfits, on the streets of Copenhagen and with a lovely (Danish for merry) closing breakfast.
