Puma taking orders from wholesalers, including those with Russian presence

BERLIN (Reuters) - German sportswear maker Puma has started taking orders for next year from wholesalers around the globe, some of which operate in Russia, but the company said it was not importing into the country following its invasion of Ukraine.

"We have started the sell-in process with our global wholesale partners for Spring/Summer 2023. Some of these partners are international groups with operations in different countries around the world, including Russia," Puma said in an e-mailed statement.

"These groups buy products centrally and locally," the company said, without elaborating.

Puma said in March it had decided to suspend operations at all of its stores in Russia and that it had already stopped deliveries.

"Currently, PUMA does not import any products into Russia. Whether PUMA will import products into Russia in 2023 depends on how the overall global situation will develop," the company said.

(Reporting by Christina Amann; Writing by Christoph Steitz)