The clothing brand has penned a pricy new global endorser partnership with tennis super star Roger Federer.
Announced on the eve of Wimbledon 2018, the Japanese company brokered the athlete ambassador deal with Federer following the end of the tennis star’s long running Nike partnership on 1 March.
The brand promoted the new tie-up with a simple welcome message across its digital and social media channels on the first day of Wimbledon as Federer took to the hallowed grass courts.
UNIQLO is honoured to welcome Roger Federer as our new Global Brand Ambassador!#UniqloRF #Uniqlo #LifeWear #RogerFederer #Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/Xn4R4H4GVV
— UNIQLO UK (@UNIQLO_UK) July 2, 2018
This early creative suggest that Uniqlo may not play in this space as an out-and-out sports brand, but rather in its current status as a ‘thoughtful, everyday apparel’ company.
The deal will see Federer represent the brand at all major tennis tournaments and he will also wear the brand’s LifeWear range (clothes for ‘all aspects of life including sportswear, innerwear and ready-to-wear’) on and off the court.
The new deal has been reported to be worth as much as $30m-a-year (for which he doesn’t even actually have to play), plus he is also free to sell other sponsor patches on his shirt (something his Nike deal did not allow).
“I am deeply committed to tennis and to winning championships. But like Uniqlo, I also have great love for life, culture and humanity,” explained Federer in the launch PR.
“We share a strong passion to have a positive impact on the world around us and look forward to combining our creative endeavors.”
Tadashi Yanai, founder and chairman of Uniqlo, said of the deal: “Mr Federer is one of the greatest champions in history; my respect for him goes beyond sport. Our partnership will be about innovation on and off court. We share a goal of making positive change in the world, and I hope together we can bring the highest quality of life to the greatest number of people. Uniqlo will help Mr Federer continue taking tennis to new places, while exploring innovations in a number of areas including technology and design with him.”
“We are in very early stages of discussing how best to align Roger’s personal humanitarian interests, strengths and availability with our community programs, while also exploring other ways we can innovate together in important areas like technology, education and sustainability,” added a Uniqlo spokeswoman says.
Comment:
Uniqlo may not be a brand best known for its performance wear or its position in the sports space, but this blockbuster brand ambassador deal spearheads a refreshed sports strategy.
But this isn’t the brand’s first tennis led foray into the sports space.
The Japanese retailer endorsed Novak Djokovic, himself a 12-time Grand Slam winner, for five years before he swapped brands and signed a sponsorship deal with Maus Freres SA’s Lacoste in 2017 (see case study).
Uniqlo also continues to include Japan’s best ever male tennis player Kei Nishikori in its athlete ambassador stable.
Interestingly, both Nishikori and Federer also wear Nike shoes – Uniqlo doesn’t make its own footwear.
Uniqlo also has deals with wheelchair tennis players Shingo Kunieda and Gordon Reid, plus golfer Adam Scott.
From Mercedes-Benz (see case study), to Moet & Chandon (see case study), Federer is one of the world’s most marketable athletes.
His name recognition will help boost Uniqlo’s global expansion efforts – especially in Europe.
In recent years Uniqlo has experienced good growth in Asia (particularly in China) and international sales now top domestic Japanese revenue.
But in Europe it faces tough challenges from established rivals such as H&M.
Federer, who turns 37 in August, penned his first Nike deal back in 1994 and the Japanese brand will have a huge hill to climb to create the same back catalogue of brilliant Federer campaigns as Nike.
These included 2017’s ‘Ro8er’ (see case study) and 2016’s ‘Steal The Show’ (see case study).
At 36, Federer may be the greatest tennis player of all time, but he is in twilight of his career.
Thus this is a huge decision Uniqlo
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