Overtime joined forces with Shopify to empower six Overtime Elite athletes to build their own direct-to-consumer brands. With the help of famous designer Gemo Wong, each athlete had the opportunity to conceptualize and craft their own lifestyle brand through multiple virtual and in-person sessions. Overtime filmed the sessions to give fans an inside look at how the creative process unfolds.
The content follows the six athletes – Bryce Griggs, Amen Thompson, Ausar Thompson, Jalen Lewis, Jai Smith and Jahzare Jackson – as they ideate, create and then execute on building their own collections. This announcement reflects a new age of entrepreneurship – empowering talented individuals to build their own brands both on and off the court with an easy-to-use ecommerce platform. Shopify and Overtime encourage athletes to look at business and growth through many lenses, not just basketball, so they can continue to monetize their skills and dynamic personalities.
“Giving athletes control of their own image and allowing them to create a custom brand is a massive step forward for athlete empowerment and creative ownership in the sports world,” says Tyler Rutstein, VP, General Merchandise Manager, Overtime. “Shopify gives 100% power to the creator, which made them an exciting and natural fit for this partnership.”
“Having the ability to build my own brand at this stage of my career is going to give me life experience and a foundation to build on as I continue on to the next level,” says Bryce Griggs, Overtime Elite athlete. “The lessons I learned in the creative process are going to help me as I collaborate with more brands in the future.”
Unlike traditional royalty or brand sponsorship deals, these six athletes now fully own the equity in and customer data from the brand that they’ve built on Shopify. Shifting the power in the marketplace from large brands to individuals gives these athletes a huge advantage when they’re approached by larger brands for product collaborations or sponsorship deals.
Each athlete will drop one collection per month on their individual website, culminating in an exclusive, shoppable New York City pop-up experience in September with Overtime and Shopify.
The first collection is from Bryce Griggs, available now at his website TheRareWolf.com.
