Chinese sports brand signs big tennis deal
14/06/2010
The deal is reported to be worth “seven figures” annually and includes co-operation on tennis festivals in China, a player apparel programme, and revenue-sharing on a co-branded apparel line. The WTA has pointed out that there are 130 million people in China with an interest in tennis and 10 million recreational players.
The brand will use the initiative as part of an international expansion strategy, but the domestic market remains of great importance too, but the idea, industry observers have noted, is that Chinese consumers will think more favourably of domestic brands if they see established international sports stars wearing the products.
“Right now we’re learning from Nike. We hope one day we can catch up and surpass Nike; of course that is our goal," said Peak’s chief executive, Jim Xu. “But we’re different because we know China better than Nike; we have products that are better suited to the Chinese market. We can give consumers another choice.”
The China Sporting Goods Federation has said that the Chinese sporting goods market is worth $6 billion and is expected to grow by 14% a year. While Nike remains the market leader, homegrown brands are catching up, appealing in particular to consumers in smaller cities with modern looks at prices a fraction of those of the big-name competition.
Even in the domestic market, Peak, known primarily for its basketball shoes, trails behind rivals Li Ning and Anta, but has been making inroads, opening 1,027 new stores last year and seeing total revenue rise 51% to $456 million.
Already the official sponsor of the NBA in China, it boasts individual deals with 12 NBA players, including Jason Kidd and Ron Artest.
Mr Xu added: “We want to extend our brand name from basketball to tennis. China is our top market. Signing deals with international sports competitions is to attain our goal of becoming more global and more professional. But of course the primary impact will be on the Chinese market and then the global market.”
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