Sid the Kid a model citizen

Eric Koreen
CanWest News Service; National Post

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Sidney Crosby has teamed up with Reebok to launch a line of fashion
clothing under the Rbk SC87 brand. He was in Mississauga, Ontario
yesterday to launch the new line.
CREDIT: Peter Redman, CanWest News Service
Sidney Crosby has teamed up with Reebok to launch a line of fashion
clothing under the Rbk SC87 brand. He was in Mississauga, Ontario
yesterday to launch the new line.

MISSISSAUGA, Ont. - In the middle of an athletics store in suburban
Toronto Tuesday, Sidney Crosby, covered head-to-toe in apparel from
his new clothing line, stood on a catwalk, flanked by two striking models.

One of the models was even sporting a T-shirt that read "I (heart)
Crosby."

Moments earlier, the catwalk served its more traditional purpose:
Models, both female and male, showcasing the new clothes from Reebok's
Crosby-inspired SC87 line, complete with casual, women's and athletic
clothing.

"It has been something for me, on my side, that I've enjoyed a lot,"
Crosby said. "For a lot of companies, maybe they wouldn't respect the
opinion of a hockey player for a clothing line, but I think they've
really listened. And it's been a lot of fun."

Crosby had significant input on all of the clothing save for the
women's line, Crosby readily admitted to all key figures involved. The
clothes will be sold exclusively in Canada at stores owned by The
Forzani Group Ltd., including Sport Chek, Sport Mart, National Sports
and Coast Mountain Sports.

The clothing line is just another in the growing group of companies
hooking up with Crosby. Reebok, Sher-Wood, Telus, Upper Deck, Tim
Hortons and Pepsi have all inked deals with the 20-year-old Nova Scotian.

Never before has a hockey player at such a young age become such an
advertising draw.

"He's attractive because of his youthfulness, his clean image, and
he's a legitimate star in his sport," said Richard Powers, a sports
managing professor at the University of Toronto.

"You've never seen anyone like him in sport. He's a phenom in a way.
Take a look at all the other major sports, and you rarely see someone
come in and dominate at such an early age. But it all comes back to
his clean image."

Indeed, that image puts him into stark contrast with the largest
recent sporting stories. And it makes marketing investments in him all
the more important.

"Take a look at Sidney Crosby. If he did something, who do you replace
him with?" Powers said. "It's difficult finding an athlete with a
profile and reputation worthy of these million-dollar endorsement deals."

"If something goes offside, it's not like you can just go to the next
person. There may not be a next person."

In hockey, there certainly isn't a next person, nor has there been a
blueprint to follow. When developing his deals, Crosby's handlers had
to look elsewhere.

LeBron James has his own clothing line in conjunction with Nike, as
does the current gold standard of professional sports marketing, Tiger
Woods.

"There's not a model, but we always keep our eyes open," Crosby's
agent, Pat Brisson, said. "Sure, the Tiger Woods, the Greg Norman, the
Wayne Gretzky, those are all brand names. At this point we look at
what all the big athletes are doing in different sports. But Sidney is
himself, and he does what he does. A reflection of what he is, that's
what we try to (communicate through) the brand."

For now, Crosby's clothes will be sold only in Canada, although
Brisson said he would eventually like to push the brand into
Pittsburgh and New York.

Crosby's early achievement on the ice put him in line to become
hockey's answer to Tiger Woods, but Crosby is at a disadvantage when
it comes to selling himself because he plays hockey.

"In order to create the brand and support the brand, you need
advertising. And in sports you need TV advertising," Powers said. "You
have to have TV to show your ads on. And until the NHL gets a solid TV
contract in the United States, his brand is going to be very different
to sell outside of Pittsburgh. That's the key, and it has been the key
in sports all along."

Also like Woods, Crosby will be careful in choosing the kinds and
numbers of companies he aligns with.

"(The clothing line) was something I was comfortable with, and I'm
more than happy to partner up with them and do it," Crosby said. "But
that doesn't mean I'm going to go and do everything else there is out
there to do."