Murray victory opens door to lucrative endorsements
Brands are lining up to throw money at British tennis player after his historic Wimbledon win
Andy Murray shed his Fred Perry clothes in 2009. It took him four more years to escape the 77-year shadow cast by the last male British Wimbledon champion.
Murray's defeat of Novak Djokovic in the July 7 tennis final will be worth about £50 million (HK$588 million), as global consumer companies such as Gillette and Coca-Cola will consider bidding for the champion's signature, said Nigel Currie, a sports marketing executive at BrandRapport in London.
Murray switched to the three stripes of German sportswear maker Adidas from the laurel wreaths that adorn the Perry shirts. Asked what Perry, who died in 1995 aged 85, would say about his run at Wimbledon, Murray quipped: "Why are you not wearing my kit?"
Perry won his third straight title at the All England Club in 1936 when Edward VIII, Queen Elizabeth's uncle, was king.
In addition to Adidas, Murray endorses racket supplier Head and watch manufacturer Rado.
Perry started his brand in the 1940s by giving away sweatbands emblazoned with his name. The business evolved into sports shirts meant for the court that won a following on the street. Perry and a partner sold out in 1961 "exhausted by the company's demands", according to the company's website.