Serena Williams revolutionized the image of women’s sports due to being exceptional on the court and a loveable personality off the court. This is why several high-profile brands were able to benefit by being associated with Serena. Over her career, even after her retirement, the 23-time Grand Slam winner has been the ambassador of a long list of brands. Two of these companies were establishments that she always manifested to be the face of.
Over the course of her career, she’s managed to endorse Wilson, JP Morgan Chase, Beats by Dre, and Audemars Piguet, among others. However, the most prolific brands who sponsored Serena Williams were Nike and Gatorade. And these were the two brands she had an emotional connect with, even before she became a superstar.
In an interview with Bloomberg, Serena Williams credited her father for a golden advice she has followed always. Richard Williams told her that her prize money winnings from tennis must never be her biggest paycheck or salary.
The celebrity with a $300 million net worth also revealed how her childhood memories associated with Gatorade motivated her to be an ambassador for the energy drink brand. She envisioned herself being in place of Michael Jordan in all the iconic commercials.
“My lifelong dream was to be with Gatorade… We would walk to the convenience store and my dad would buy our one Gatorade in a can, and we would all have to share it. And it was like, I’ve always loved that and I’ve always loved that story. And I’ve always loved Gatorade. And, and I would always see the mike. I wanna be like Mike commercials. And I was like, I want that,” Serena said in the latest episode of Bloomberg Originals’ podcast.
Growing up in the 1980s, Nike was one of the most talked-about sports apparel brands. A fan of Michael Jordan, Nike was another athlete that she wanted to “be with”. Despite praising Puma for their brief association, Williams had more faith in Nike for making her a global superstar.
“I had always wanted to be with Nike from day one. And even before signing with Puma, I was wearing Nike just ’cause I would buy it…
I think they have an opportunity to market, especially at the time. It’s just like, if you want to be the best, then you have to wear Nike. And I think that that was seared in my mind. I wanted to be the best and I think the best, they had the best stuff, they had the best marketing, they had an opportunity to put you as we talk, we briefly globally. And ’cause tennis is not just in the United States, right? It’s Australia, it’s England, it’s Italy, it’s China. It’s literally everywhere on the globe. And can think of just a handful of companies that can reach that far,” the former World No.1 admitted.
As fate would have it, Serena Williams was able to fulfill her wishes. In 2003, Serena joined the Nike family. Whereas, her partnership with Gatorade began in 2009.
How Did Nike and Gatorade Pay Tribute to Serena Williams on Her Retirement?
Having a long-lasting relationship with the two brands, as expected, Nike and Gatorade paid tribute to Serena Williams on her retirement.
Gatorade released a video in 2022, celebrating the distinguished career of Serena Williams. The video was first played during the MTV Video Music Awards (VMA). A beautifully written campaign – “Love Means Everything” – was narrated by her good friend Beyonce.
Similarly, Nike also released an ad of their own. Just after Serena was eliminated from the US Open 2022, the company’s campaign – “By Changing Nothing, She Changed Everything’ – also took the sports world by storm. For the same, Zendaya was the narrator.
