Now that the New York Yankees’ Derek Jeter has retired after a Hall of Fame career and the adulation of fans, he is focusing on his future. His marketing past — and present — has been pretty impressive (endorsement deals with Nike, Ford, Gatorade, Rawlings, Steiner Sports, Movado, Avon, and more).
Jeter’s marketing future is being meticulously planned and some projects have already been launched, just a short time after his September 2014 retirement. As Tom Van Riper reports for Forbes,
“Fenway may well prove to be the site not of a true retirement, but merely the final pit stop of a career transition. For all the millions Jeter has pocketed as a player, the real money is still ahead of him, ready for the taking. Statistically, Jeter is a borderline top 100 all-time player, plenty good enough to qualify for the Hall of Fame. His standing with the press and the public, though, reaches well beyond that. The reasons are easy enough to grasp: big market, iconic team, five rings, no PEDs, years of consistency, and, by all appearances, a modest, team-oriented player. A throwback in the age of the gyrating, ‘look at me’ athlete. Whether it’s straight endorsements or equity-based deals, ‘He’ll have offers thrown at him by companies that want to use his name,’ says Ryan Schinman, CEO of Platinum Rye Entertainment, a company that brokers deals between celebrities and corporations. ‘Jeter could make hundreds of millions post-career.’”
Jeter’s first big post-career project is The Player’s Tribune.
It’s also on Twitter.
And Facebook, of course!
I thought the Yankees showed some marketing brilliance to. They made sure they had two Derek Jeter days, insuring that they would sell out the building against the Royals (who knew?) up against the U.S. Open and the first weekend of the NFL. The patches and “2” logos took it a little too far, but utter brilliance overall.