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Using sports persons to make fashion statements

Serena Williams is back in the news in the on going US open tennis tourney. However, this time not because of her play, but for her fashion statements. One cannot ignore this as not only that she is too important, but also her attempt to spread fashion message is quite significant. She has kickstarted a controversy due to her dress during the US open tournament. As one who has signed multi million dollar endorsements with the American foot wear and garment giant Nike, she is all out to promote the products of this company. That is where the problem lies. Just before the tournament, she exhibited her new dress to make her own fashion statement. This showed her in studded tank top and matching jean skirt and jacket. She also wore a stylish footwear - knee-high black go-go boots. The US Tennis Federation has told that she could not wear this because these are not the acceptable attire for tennis. Fashion makers and tennis managers have different ideas about the dressing pattern. But, Serena is too powerful a woman to get out of the fashion world. She was ranked 60th in the list of 100 powerful celebrity list of the Forbes magazine.

That means, she is the world’s 60th personality who can create wonders in the fashion world if used properly. The list shows that the names of personalities who are popular in terms of media hits. In other words, they possess the earning power for the companies which choose to endorse them. Many garment companies enter into multi million endorsements with such personalities to promote their products. Her elder sister, Venus Williams is also popular, holding 65th rank. Importantly, the Williams sisters have been making fashion statements both inside and outside the tennis courts.

The fashion trendsetters all over the world eagerly follow these statements. Not only for sports wears, but for the general women wear. Whatever, these two sisters wear or endorse catches up fast in the market.

This columnist has seen ads appearing in London near the Wimbledon court — ‘See what Serena wears now - that is the fashion today.’ But, the promotion of fashion garments is not the exclusive habit of Serena. All sports persons are known to be doing that. Take the just concluded Olympics. One estimate puts it that nearly US $ 100 million worth of fashionable clothes did their rounds along the Olympics village.

Apart from the sports persons themselves promoting the clothes, many fashion designers did the same. Shops did a good business to highlight fashionable clothes, belts, hats, jewellery, watches and boots. In many a case, they exhibited the photos or statues of the sports persons named to be popular when they displayed the products. But that’s not all. There were endorsements of the sports personalities for all sorts of dresses. A lot of money has been traded to make these famous sports persons to wear them, show them of, project and promote these dresses. So, individually, the sports persons gained for getting sponsorships to the Athens Olympics meet as also to support their training and connected expenses. So, they were more than willing to come forward to do this. And, on the other side of the coin, these sports persons endorsing a product do not hold any legal liability for the statements they make.

They can endorse any product making any statement which the company wants them to do for the money spent on them, but any one who feels cheated by using the garments bought on the fait of such endorsement does not have a mentionable legal remedy against these celebrities.

To that extent, legally, they are no better than the unknown models who endorse the products, but in reality, these celebrities are far more powerful than the models. Admittedly, many people buy these clothes endorsed by such sports personalities sincerely believing the words of the sports persons. In the US, there had been instances of legal battles having been drawn against sports personalities endorsing such products once the consumers are dissatisfied. In India also, there had been unsuccessful legal battles on consumer goods, not garments. So, while the garments sellers are wise in using the business prudence to propel the sales through the sports persons, the celebrities do have a moral obligation to endorse only these products which they genuinely believe are good.

- P S Sundar