CytoSport renews deal with NBA MVP
Published 8:55 am Monday, November 2, 2015
CytoSport Inc., the Hormel Foods Corp.-owned company behind the Muscle Milk brand, has renewed its partnership with All-Star NBA point guard Stephen Curry.
Curry was named NBA MVP in for the 2014-15 season, and his Golden State Warriors won the NBA Finals.
“My partnership with the Muscle Milk team began in the early stages of my career, and they’ve supported me throughout this amazing journey,” Curry said in a press release. “Their team has become a part of my family on and off the court, and the relationship that we have is what these kinds of partnerships are all about. I’ve always said I enjoy working with them because they make it easy. Their focus on impacting high school sports is really important to me, and I look forward to becoming more involved in those efforts in the coming year. I’m just really proud to be a part of their team.”
The Muscle Milk brand originally inked a deal with Curry in 2013, and the renewal will extend the partnership through 2018. Terms of the deal are undisclosed.
Curry will help tell the Muscle Milk brand story through a national TV campaign and other marketing and sales assets including advertising, retail programs, point-of-sale collateral, media opportunities, experiential events and integration into local and national activations.
“We’ve watched Stephen raise the bar over and over, and there’s not another person or athlete who deserves the honors he’s achieved,” said Brandon Hagy, sports marketing manager for CytoSport Inc. in the release. “He’s influenced millions of people—from the up-and-coming high school athlete to business executives to fellow professional athletes.
Curry will become the lead driver of the Muscle Milk Recovery Grant program, which provides grants to help revitalize high school athletic programs in need around the country. In the last three years, the program has given $750,000 to 63 high school programs around the country.
“He’s an extraordinary person who exemplifies the connection people have with sports,” Hagy said in the release. “He’s been an integral part of telling the Muscle Milk brand story, and we couldn’t be more proud to call him a teammate. Stephen will have a big part in helping us continue to impact high school athletic programs around the country through our Muscle Milk Recovery Grant program, and we’re excited for our shared vision to take our partnership to levels that extend beyond the game of basketball.”
The brand also released a limited edition Stephen Curry bottle exclusively in the Bay Area with plans to launch one nationally next year. The company will release a new TV campaign with Curry early 2016.