One way around these restrictions is to focus sponsorships on individual athletes. While the ads of massive sports
Adidas Zx 500 Donne drinks brands like Gatorade and Powerade (the official sports drink of the Olympics) have long featured some of
Nike Air Force 1 Womens the world’s most recognizable athletes, a number of smaller brands have benefitted from more targeted athlete endorsements. By focusing on those athletes that closely fit the company’s culture but may fall outside the most viewed sports, producers are able to benefit from the professional athlete ethos without breaking the bank. One company that has followed this mantra with great success is the health-and-wellness-focused Vega. The Canadian company specializes in all natural, vegan weight management and sports nutrition products and has seen its retail distribution and brand awareness explode in recent years. The company maintains a cadre of professional athletes that are top performers in endurance and winter sports, including
Nike Air Max 270 Dames three athletes that will be featured in Sochi: pair figure skater Meagan Duhamel; downhill snowboarder Michael Lambert; and Paralympic skier Josh Dueck. While none of the stars are household names, each has a passionate following, garners significant attention within their area of competition and lends an air of “real user” credibility to the brand in an era of superfluous and seemingly incongruous endorsements.
Looking closer to the Sochi games, one brand that could benefit greatly is the Russian supplement specialty retailer Vitawin. One of the host nation’s most visible sports nutrition outlets (and owner of a recently opened store in downtown Sochi), Vitawin is the official nutrition supplier of the supremely popular
Nike Air Max Classic Bw Womens pan-European Kontinental Hockey League and sponsor of the highly visible Russian hockey player Ilya Kovalchuk,
Nike Air Max Thea Womens who will be joining the Russian national team in Sochi. The company has been touting Kovalchuk – in full Team Russia regalia, of course – in its recent advertising and is expected to host a number of events in its stores throughout the country during the Games. The company could prove to be a major catalyst in building mass appeal for the category in a market with huge growth potential. In addition to stocking many of the world’s leading brands, Vitawin also sells a private label line it advertises as manufactured in the USA and Russia: a key selling point in a market still weary of domestic production standards.
