Just days back, Pune’s famous Chitale Bandhu Mithaiwale signed up former cricketer Sachin Tendulkar to lead its 75-year celebrations. This wouldn’t have been news if Tendulkar hadn’t retired from active cricket for over a decade. But despite the latter’s long absence from the playing field the brand saw merit in the legacy of the retired run machine — Sachin Tendulkar is the highest run scorer in both Test matches and One-Day Internationals — and roped him to launch its milestone year celebrations.
Tendulkar is not the only one whose brand value has sustained well past his retirement date. Look at MS Dhoni (JioCinema, Panerai, Indigo Paints) and Sourav Ganguly (Tripura Tourism, Bandhan Bank, Lux Cozi). Tendulkar, Dhoni and Ganguly also appear among the top 5 in OneCricket’s ranking of Indian cricketers in terms of brand value.
As Olympic double bronze medallist and toast of the town PR Sreejesh prepares to hang up his boots, the question that comes to mind is, will he continue to bag branding deals, or will he simply fade away from the brand endorsement firmament?
One thing will happen most certainly — he will have to take a pay cut of 25-40% now that his playing days are over. Industry estimates suggest that at the moment, Sreejesh’s deals range from `10 lakh to `15 lakh per day.
Increasing shelf-life
The key to longevity of players lies in understanding the qualities that have made them stand out during their careers and how these attributes can resonate with brands after retirement, say experts. “An athlete’s brand is deeply rooted in the values they uphold during their active career and those values will be part of their identity while representing their brand,” says Amol Patil, adjunct faculty, Sports Management, K J Somaiya Institute of Management. Take cricketer Shikhar Dhawan, who announced his retirement last week. Patil notes that Dhawan’s bold and aggressive persona is a key asset that brands would like to associate with. “If he can maintain that in some form related to the sport, he will continue to secure endorsements in the future,” he adds.
While many athletes struggle to maintain their brand image after retiring from active competition, those who find a way to stay connected to their sport—such as Rahul Dravid as a coach or Ravi Shastri in commentary—often sustain their endorsement potential.
Experts also say the real test of an athlete’s brand value lies in the manner in which they leverage their stardom to give back to society. In other words, what matters post-retirement is the legacy one leaves behind. Sreejesh ticks all the right boxes. “Sreejesh was the standout performer in each of India’s Olympic medal winning campaigns. Olympics is the world’s grandest sporting spectacle where you compete against the world’s best athletes and teams. He is a perfect fit for any brand that is looking at a legacy-based campaign,” says Vishal Jaison, co-founder Baseline Ventures.
A successful second innings in the advertising market also depends on how the sports person reinvents himself. Yuvraj Singh, for instance, has acquired a stake in sports athleisure firm Agilitas Sports, co-founded by Abhishek Ganguly, former managing director of Puma India and South-East Asia. Sourav Ganguly has created a niche for himself as the host of Dadagiri, a gameshow that has completed 10 seasons on Zee Bangla television channel. Tendulkar has been actively involved in initiatives aimed at providing educational opportunities to children. So they have what most brands vie for — top of mind recall.
In this context, Dhawan can look forward to a fruitful post-retirement career. He runs Da One Sports, which aims to improve the sporting ecosystem at the grassroots level. This gives him a lot to look forward to. Most athletes experience a significant drop in public visibility after retiring, but Shikhar’s active social media presence and entrepreneurial endeavors will likely prevent that.
Says sports & entertainment industry professional and former VP, RIL Sports, Indranil Blah, “Shikhar has consistently produced engaging content, showcased his wit, and maintained a highly active social media presence, which have been a significant plus for him.” This visibility will likely continue, thanks to his strong social presence.
So there you have it: The bottom line is you need to stay in circulation, says a former head of a media firm. “There is a much stronger ecosystem in place now than a few decades ago for sports people to leverage. So staying active in another field is the next big opportunity for them post-retirement,” she adds.