Lonzo Ball and his family’s Big Baller Brand have made waves in the apparel industry by straying from tradition. Rather than partner with a more established brand like Nike or Adidas, the Balls chose to launch their own company and sell all of their shoes and other gear directly through their site.
Ball already has a signature shoe, and now he’ll be getting a whole collection of apparel, and it will be the first offering from Big Baller Brand available in traditional stores, according to Jovan Buha of ESPN:
Big Baller Brand is debuting the “ZO2 Collection” apparel line for Lakers rookie Lonzo Ball today at ComplexCon in Long Beach, Calif. According to the company, the “ZO2 Collection” is the first line of Big Baller Brand products to be offered wholesale to retailers. Up to this point, all Big Brand Brand products have been sold exclusively on BigBallerBrand.com.
Big Baller Brand being available in more traditional retailers is an interesting move for the brand, and it will be fascinating to see how people being able to try on their apparel in stores will affect the public’s willingness to pay the often exorbitant prices for the gear.
Buha also reports that brand will be making another move that has become more traditional for basketball players in recent years — trying to capture the Chinese market:
Big Baller Brand is still “weeks away” from launching its Big Baller Brand China flagship stores in Shanghai and Hong Kong — as well as its Chinese retail site — but the goal of the pop-up shops is to expand the brand’s global reach and get the Chinese market familiarized with the brand and family,
The NBA has become increasingly popular in China in recent years, and perhaps no American player captured the country’s interest more than former Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant.
By playing for Bryant’s team with a flashy, visually-pleasing and pass-happy style, it will be intriguing to watch whether or not Ball is able to grab any type of similar foothold in the country as his family, game and brand become more familiar overseas.
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