Puma leaped into Web 3.0 last week, purchasing the “puma.eth” Ethereum Name Service (ENS) domain and eight non-fungible tokens (NFTs), each with “feline” components.
The name change to “puma.eth” vaulted the German apparel company to the Twitter account with the 13th-most followers out of accounts with ENS domains. It ranks below the leader and well-known NFT enthusiast Paris Hilton and ex-NBA basketball player Shaquille O’Neal.
ENS, known for its signature “.eth” markers, is a popular way of showing support for Web 3.0 on Twitter and has become one of the “it” things to do for big corporations looking to launch into the space. Last year, Budweiser changed its handle to “beer.eth,” setting off a frenzy on crypto Twitter.
The public was a little more tempered to the “puma.eth” news, but it reacted with excitement, mainly because another well-known brand was entering the space. Although it is uncertain how Puma will innovate within Web 3.0, the company is hiring for two positions that require “metaverse” experience: “Digital Culture Manager” and “Brand Associate Creative Director.”
To mark its entrance into Web 3.0, Puma changed its profile picture on Twitter to one of its purchased NFTs — Cool Cat #32. Puma wrote, “New PFP…what do you think @coolcatsnft?”
Eight “Cat-Themed” NFTs Reside in Puma.ETH’s OpenSea Account
Although reports suggest that there were an initial 18 NFTs in Puma.ETH’s OpenSea account, at the time of this writing, there are just eight — seven if the “puma.eth” ENS name is excluded. Four speak to the likelihood of Puma partnerships, suggesting a direction of its Web 3.0 ambitions:
- Cool Cats #32
- Gutter Cat #1110
- Lazy Lions #4609
- Three Catbloxes
The Lazy Lions Twitter account, perhaps jumping the gun, asked its followers after the news broke what they should do with this “partnership?” If this is inside information being shared, Puma may be on track for more collaborations with the other NFT collections, though it is uncertain what these would look like.
NFT collections collaborating with big corporations aren’t unusual, if slightly rare. The Bored Ape Yacht Club and Pixel Vault teamed up with Adidas for a drop last year, and Nike bought RTFKT around the same time, sparking interest in a possible Web 3.0 rivalry between the two shoe companies.
Puma has given no word as to what moves it will make next, but likely NFT degens will be watching closely, waiting to pounce on a hint of news that could provide a fresh spark to the market after a slow February in trading.