Skechers signs David Ortiz for Americas campaign

By

Cassidy Mantor

Published
May 5, 2017

Skechers newest addition to its team of former athletes and secret weapon for boosting brand awareness internationally is 10-time Major League Baseball All-Star David Ortiz.

Ortiz was selected to join the Skechers team, which includes retired legendary athletes Joe Montana and Sugar Ray Leonard. The particular appeal of Ortiz is not only the respect fans have for him as an athlete in the MLB, but also that he is Dominican-American. Skechers plans to use his heritage to draw more consumers throughout the Americas.

Michael Greenberg, Skechers President said, “David represents a perfect fit for our athletic and casual Men’s footwear collections... [W]ith a fanbase beyond the United States, especially across the Americas, he’ll help us build awareness around the globe.”

Ortiz will help market both men's performance sport and casual lifestyle footwear globally.

He noted the appeal of partnering with Skechers, saying, "twenty seasons in the majors took its toll on my body and especially my feet."

Known as "Big Papi" to fans, he goes down in baseball history as one of the greats, with a personality fans also found endearing. He said of his new Skechers deal that despite the wear and tear on his body, the new Skechers have him "feeling like [he's] walking on the clouds."

While actively playing, he worked with New Balance as his footwear sponsor. Now he joins the team Skechers has assembled of retired athletes that also includes Mariano Rivera and Wayne Gretzky.

Currently Skechers does business in Latin America through wholly owned subsidiaries. It will be interesting to see how Skechers integrates the Ortiz campaign to aggressively expand in that market.

Ortiz will be featured in the global, multi-channel campaign for Skechers that will launch this fall.