The UFC has a new licensing partner in the United States as Zappos becomes the companies official sponsor. UFC lifestyle and fan apparel will be available for sale on the Zappos website starting January 18th per a press release.
The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Zappos will create officially licensed UFC apparel and fan gear. The online retailer will have the exclusive rights to sell the merchandise in the U.S. and the non-exclusive rights to sell outside the U.S.
The company will begin to sell UFC merchandise on the site starting January 18th.
Zappos is an online retailer based out of Las Vegas, Nevada in 1999. It was acquired by Amazon.com in 2009. Notably, one of its owners Tony Hsieh died in a fire leaving his estate up for question. The WSJ reported on a troubling past for Hsieh fueled by addiction to drugs, alcohol and an interest in fire.
Payout Perspective:
The deal with the online retailer is a sign of the UFC wanting to expand its brand in making merchandise available to a greater amount of people. While the company sells its merchandise on its own website, adding Zappos as a partner to sell its stuff will broaden the availability. Of course, with Zappos creating UFC gear, one might see that as diluting the brand. But, if the goal is to generate revenue, that should not be a problem.
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