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Today’s Case

Luxury brand Shinola promote their graduation campaign for Michigan and Michigan State athletes

Detroit-based luxury brand Shinola announced its exclusive graduation campaign for the Class of 2023. From April 28-May 5, they are offering complimentary in-store personalization to celebrate graduates and their accomplishments.

Partnering with NIL platform Athlytic to connect with five MSU athletes and four UM athletes, the campaign allowed select athletes to give a graduating senior on their respective team a watch as a reward for their accolades.

The company is offering complimentary engraving on their Runwell watches, where graduates can personalize their casebacks with quotes or messages like "Spartan for Life" to make their Shinola item even more memorable.

The Verdict:

• Really like the relationship with an upscale brand

  • I’m starting to see more NIL deals with companies that sell luxury goods, which is a great way to tap into a subset of the athlete’s social media audience

• The gifting aspect of this partnership is great

  • An athlete giving a graduating teammate a watch that can be customizable is amazing. This allows the NIL athlete to “pay back” a graduating athlete for their leadership, mentorship, etc.

  • Additionally, the goods Shinola sells are stylish yet classic, and can be worn for years to come

• Love the home state tie-in

  • Shinola is a Detroit-based company, and with both UM and MSU being within a 90 minute drive from Detroit (including a Shinola storefront in Ann Arbor), this is a great way to support in-state businesses and colleges for NIL deals.

LSU basketball ball Flau’jae Johnson has earned $2 MILLION in NIL deals to date

Coming off a national championship, Flau’jae has signed four NIL deals in the past month alone. Check out this TikTok video for more!

Question of the Day

How important is financial literacy for student-athletes?

• Extremely important

• Somewhat important

• Not important

Vote on the Sports Court Instagram Story and comment below.

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Court is adjourned. Go be great!!