Germany's Puma AG is launching its first TV advertising campaign in the U.S.

Germany's Puma AG is launching its first TV advertising campaign in the U.S. later this month, in a bid to remind fashion-conscious consumers of its roots in the world of competitive sports.

The ads are part of an estimated $20 million global campaign Puma is launching to promote athletes participating in the 2004 Olympics in Athens. First appearing in the U.S. on March 15 on cable channels including Viacom Inc.'s MTV2, Comedy Central and BET, the ads are meant to build on Puma's momentum in the U.S., where its stylish low- top sneakers have become ubiquitous.

"We've had a lot of success in urban areas in the U.S.," says Jay Piccola, president of Puma North America. "Now we're sort of introducing ourselves to a more mainstream consumer" in other parts of the country. Puma plans to spend about $2.2 million on the U.S. campaign.

Called "Stick, Stick, Stick," the 15- and 30-second spots feature Olympic track-and-field athletes from Jamaica passing a relay baton to locals in backdrops ranging from a busy marketplace to an outdoor discotheque. As the Olympians pass off the "stick," viewers hear a loud "boing!" as Puma track-and-field trainers appear magically on the runners' feet.

While Puma has gained sales momentum recently, it continues to hold down its advertising and marketing budget in North America. Net income doubled last year from a year earlier to $226.7 million on worldwide sales of $1.65 billion. Puma says its advertising and marketing budget in North America is about 8% of sales for the region.

Puma remains a small competitor in the U.S. athletic-footwear market, which has grown about 3.3% to $1.5 billion so far this year, according to SportScan, a market-research firm based in Florida. SportScan says Puma has 0.25% market share in the athletic-footwear category, trailing giants such as Nike Inc., with 45%, and Reebok International Ltd., with 9%.

Known in the U.S. primarily as a maker of trendy sneakers, company executives say Puma's sport-influenced ad campaign is meant to remind U.S. consumers of the company's traditions in soccer, track and baseball. "Americans don't know how much of a sports brand Puma is around the world," said Steven Grasse, chief executive of Quaker City Mercantile, which produced the ad campaign.

The relaxed tone of the ads, which feature children playing in a park and a group of young people dancing outdoors at night, is a departure from the intense ads recently launched by larger competitors such as Adidas-Salomon AG, whose "Impossible Is Nothing" campaign uses images of boxer Muhammad Ali.

"You kind of see this formulaic approach that puts up an athlete and says, 'Wear this shoe and you'll be like him,' " says Antonio Bertone, global director of brand management at Puma. "We're not like that. And I think people will be happy for once to see a fun, lighthearted commercial from a sports brand."