Puma's CEO; Franz Koch will step down by the end of March from his post after a year and a half's tenure.  The German sportswear manufacturing giant has been frenetically reducing and trimming its product ranges and restructuring its management to cut costs, reported Reuters.

The announcement of the stepping down comes 11 days after Jean-Francois Palus from controlling shareholder PPR took over the post of Chairman of the supervisory board.

 "We will pursue the reorganization of the company, focus on product innovation and marketing, and will continue to devote the necessary resources to the development of the brand," Palus told Reuters.

 Koch's step down declaration comes shortly after Jochen Zeitz, erstwhile chairman's departure, reported The Wall Street journal.

"The departure of Mr. Zeitz, who spent more than 20 years at Puma, marks a new chapter in Puma's history" Puma told WSJ.

"The company is therefore entering a new phase in its development and is changing its top management structure to take on those challenges." it added.

However, Koch will continue working with Palus until the christening of a new CEO, which they hope to hire by this spring, reported Reuters.

Puma is expected to close down 80 stores and will be focusing extensively on marketing and production, reported The Fashionweek Daily.