The endorsement and media partnerships will significantly increase for the 22-year-old Manu Bhaker, with fees to see a surge of 20 percent, after her stellar performance at the Paris Olympics, according to industry watchers.
In a historic moment for India, Bhaker became the first Indian woman to win an Olympic shooting medal, securing bronze in the women’s 10m air pistol event on July 28. With this, she ended a 12-year drought for the nation. Her performance was particularly motivating for the viewers, given how she faced an upsetting debut at the Tokyo Olympics in 2020- where she returned home after competing in three events without success.
The story and achievements naturally resonate strongly with young audiences and sports enthusiasts- which is likely to soon make brands queue up for endorsement deals and collaborations.
With her recent bronze medal win at the Paris Olympics, brings a fresh wave of credibility, inspiration, and youth appeal, highlights Yasin Hamidani, Director, Media Care Brand Solutions.
She is likely to attract collaborations from sportswear, fitness, health and wellness, and youth-centric brands.
“Additionally, her disciplined and determined persona makes her an ideal ambassador for educational platforms and motivational campaigns. Brands looking to associate with a rising sports icon who embodies resilience and excellence will find Manu Bhaker a compelling choice for their marketing endeavors,” Hamidani shares.
As of now, the prominent Indian shooter endorses several brands including HealthShots and Performax Activewear .
Her current brand value is estimated to be around $10 million and her endorsement fee is predicted to rise by 20-30 percent, as per Hamidani, as it’s common for athletes to experience a significant rise in their market value after winning an Olympic medal due to heightened visibility and prestige.
In the past, the winner of India’s first medal at Tokyo Olympics 2020, Mirabai Chanu was also the first at drawing the attention of brands, followed by Neeraj Chopra who was signed by Gillette and MuscleBlaze, while bronze-winning wrestler Bajrang Punia became the face of ASICS, Optimum Nutrition and Thums Up.
For Bhaker, there will be a spike in the endorsements for sure, adds Anand Yalvigi, sports industry stalwart with over 25 years of experience in Sports Management and ex-director-sports at dentsu International.
“She has a mass appeal in terms of cutting back because she’s a youth icon as well. Her communication skills are great- she has a strong language proficiency in both English and Hindi. She definitely will have a lot of endorsements coming her way in the next few months time,” he says.
However, going by the history of sports and athletes, especially women, when Sania Mirza won the first Wimbledon or her Grand Slam and then moving on to P.V. Sindhu, there always has been hesitance from the brands’ end at first. Therefore, he shares, “There needs to be continuity in terms of the performance to attract more eyeballs and to eventually get more endorsements.”
No brand recall
Many believe brands like to make a beeline for athletes after their win to cash in on their popularity, sign them up for long-term deals.
Sandeep Goyal, Chairman, Rediffusion, begs to differ.
According to him, brand endorsement and deals don’t really work like this – “this whole premise of being featured in an ad because you won an Olympic medal.”
“99.9% of consumers don’t even know what Manu Bhaker looks like. Recognition and recall are key to brand endorsements. Neeraj Chopra is just one exception, Abhinav Bindra never got anything,” Goyal highlights.
It seems unlikely that brands would latch on to her success at the Olympics.