Cricket is a lucrative sport once you’ve made it to the top. People with a lot of money have a vision to multiply it. Elite sports personalities do have people running around them for work in all contexts. The probability of becoming an entrepreneur when you have a lot of money is not really low, especially in the case of athletes who comparatively don’t have a long shelf life in their primary career.
Today on our weekly chatter, we talk about our beloved Indian Cricketers who have got their own brands!
List of Indian Cricketers who have their own brands
1) MS Dhoni –
The two-time World Cup-winning Captain MS Dhoni is the co-owner of sports apparel brand, Seven. Available on e-commerce websites like Amazon, the brand has 7 retails outlets of its own and is available across 300 distribution outlets all over the country.
2) Virat Kohli –
The Indian skipper co-invested in the clothing brand Wrogn, owned by Universal Sportbiz since it’s inception in 2014. Wrogn was the official apparel sponsor to the IPL team Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) before becoming the official team sponsor for the side.
Other than Wrogn, Kohli also collaborated with global big-shot Puma to launch his own collection “One8” in the year 2017, which includes sports clothing and footwear manufactured by Puma.
3) Yuvraj Singh –
India’s World Cup hero Yuvraj Singh launched his own brand YouWeCan (YWC) in 2017. YouWeCan sells premium sports gear as well as fashionwear. The sporting equipment includes English and Kashmir willow cricket-bats, other protective gear, and kit bags etc. The southpaw also started the Yuvraj Singh Foundation after battling and defeating cancer in 2011 following Lance Armstrong’s ‘Livestrong Foundation’
4) Sachin Tendulkar –
The master blaster Sachin Tendulkar in 2016 launched his own premium menswear and accessories brand True Blue in a joint venture with Arvind Fashions. “The menswear label embodies the spirit of the global Indian, the 21st-century traditionalist equally at home in New Delhi and New York”.
Other than True Blue, the little master is also a co-investor of Virat Kohli’s Wrogn.
Also read: Career in Sports Team management
5) Harbhajan Singh –
The Turbanator Harbhajan Singh has got his own line of cricket equipment – Bhajji Sports. Dawned by many domestic stars in the IPL, Bhajji Sports has proved to be a profitable venture. With sales over 200 distribution channels across the country and an exclusive store in Toronto, Canada, Bhajji Sports has also been the official kit manufacturer for multiple domestic cricket teams in India.
6) Anil Kumble –
Jumbo as he is fondly known, Anil Kumble in partnership with Microsoft, launched a sports tech startup called Spektacom. Spektacom’s flagship product – Spektacom Power Bat has an AI-based innovative sensor-powered sticker. It smartly quantifies the quality of a player’s shot by capturing data and analyzing its impact characteristics through a gamut of wireless sensors and cloud analytics. Compared to the other brands mentioned in the list, Spektacom is a startup and is focusing on a major revolution in aiding sports through technology.
7) Yuzvendra Chahal –
The beloved leggie Yuzi Chahal has started his own lifestyle brand Cheqmate in collaboration with HTS. “With the launch of CheQmate, my partner, HTS and I, open our arms to brand collaborations for the future. Initially, we plan to deal in lifestyle products and services like games, ventures and sub-brands to offer Indian sports lovers with one of a kind experience,” Chahal said.
8) Shikhar Dhawan –
The prolific left-hander Shikhar Dhawan co-founded home-décor brand DaOne Home along with wife Aesha Dhawan in 2018. The brand is selling upholsteries and soft furnishings designed and manufactured by an in-house team in Delhi. Currently, products such as bed linen, cushions and table linen are available online through the brand’s dedicated website and through other e-commerce websites.