Oakley Grows Asian Sponsorship Investment 11x Year-on-Year

The American eyewear brand Oakley has charged out of the blocks in 2021 with spending levels (year-to-date) reaching almost US$3m across a raft of platforms, an increase of 11x year-on-year.

One such deal is with the Korean Sport and Olympic Committee (KSOC), the custodian of Olympic sports in South Korea. Under the deal, Oakley will provide sunglasses and goggles to South Korean athletes under the KSOC’s aegis through to the end of 2024. It will also see KSOC carry out various marketing activities with the eyewear brand over the course of their partnership.

The deal expands the eyewear brand’s reach in South Korea, with Oakley already supporting a number of athletes individually: including Jin Jong-Oh (shooting), Kim Hyun-Soo and Lee Jeong-Hoo (baseball), Na A-Reum and Lee Hye-Jin (cycling) and Ko Jin-Young (golf).

KSOC president Lee Kee-Heung said: “I greatly appreciate the generous support from Oakley to allow Team Korea to participate in [Olympic] Games where sunglasses are very necessary. I hope this is an opportunity for everyone to unite and cheer for a safe and competitive future.”

Going back to ASN’s numbers, Oakley’s average quarterly sponsorship investment over the past three years is about US$407k. That’s already quite a modest amount for such a global brand leader operating in Asia, but then 2020 came along and Oakley were forced to pull a number of deals – due to the “COVID effect”, and cancellations of sports events. They invested a mere US$484k for the entire year, ie about 25% of the usual levels.

They clearly see 2021 as a chance to make a fresh start though: the company has spent almost US$2.7m to date, a relative 11x increase over the depressed 2020, and even a 3.3x increase over their (more indicative) 3-year rolling average. The Japanese MotoGP sponsorship remains the crown jewel in Oakley’s portfolio in the region.