Wossamotta wrote:
This $40,000 estimate for Abbey's contract ...what are people basing this on? It's likely more than twice that.
$40k is not a real number - from the outside, I would guess she'll get an $80k base and the ability to double that with various performance rewards.
Couple of things - the intangibles. It would be hard for a company like NB or Saucony to participate in the running business without a competitive team. The designers would not be excited, the marketers would not have as much to work with, etc..Competition provides an edge to a company that can't really be quantified.
(olde timers will remember that NB tried the 'no sponsorship' route in the 90s - that didn't work for them. I still have a NB shirt with the "sponsored by nobody" tagline from 1995 or so. I love that shirt)
and the cost of advertising. Abbey D is now a walking talking, charismatic billboard. She will be all over the media wearing the NB logo. That is important. A billboard advertising program in a middlemarket US city might cost $50,000 - having an attractive young woman wearing your brand is surely worth more than 3 billboards in Tulsa.
Finally, I believe NB cab deduct the cost of sponsorship - so cut a nice slice off the 'cost' to NB.