This week, an in-depth look at the recent player protest in the WNBA over their salaries, which are low when considering the league\u2019s growing popularity. Despite the broad support among fans and the celebrity status of many of the players, fashion brands have been notably silent on the protest. <\/p>\n
At the WNBA All-Star game this past weekend, all the talk was about what the players were wearing. But rather than focusing on the designer looks from brands like Loewe that the WNBA players have become known to wear, the conversation instead focused on the plain black T-shirts they wore to warm up. Every player and coach wore a shirt with the slogan: \u201cPay Us What You Owe Us.\u201d<\/p>\n
The words have become a rallying cry for the women of the WNBA, which has seen its viewership numbers and cultural cachet skyrocket while athletes\u2019 average pay remains startlingly low. This has led the athletes to rely even more on the brand deals and fashion sponsorships that come with being part of the league to supplement their income. But the message at the All-Star Game revealed a tension within the league. Overall, players are more valuable than ever to fashion brands<\/a> \u2014 yet many brands have been silent on the issue of fair wages.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s not just about equal salaries, it\u2019s about equal opportunity to grow in the league we helped build,\u201d said Kristine Anigwe, a former WNBA player who left the league in 2023 to play in the EuroLeague.<\/p>\n Anigwe is also a stylist who works with current WNBA players Tiffany Hayes and Cameron Brink, a consultant who helps women\u2019s basketball players establish their personal brands and business strategies off the court, and the founder of a custom fashion line called KA Originals, which is set to launch its first bridal collection later this year. All of these jobs leverage skills that Anigwe said she had to learn to compensate for the low salary that WNBA players earn.<\/p>\n The average WNBA player\u2019s salary is around $127,000<\/a>, according to Claudia Goldin, an economist who is advising the WNBA Players Association. For the NBA, it\u2019s over $10 million. But it\u2019s not just about absolute numbers. The WNBA still brings in less revenue than the NBA \u2014\u00a0but the proportions are unequal, as well. In the NBA, NFL and NHL, around 50% of the total revenue generated by the league goes to players. In the WNBA, it\u2019s only 9%<\/a>. Despite this, the WNBA keeps growing, with TV ratings and ticket sales up 23% and 26%<\/a>, respectively, this year.<\/p>\n \u201cThese are tangible numbers,\u201d Anigwe said, pointing to figures like the 500% increase<\/a> in merchandise revenue for the WNBA that has not trickled down to players.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, for the brands that partner with WNBA players, business is booming. Caitlin Clark\u2019s signature Nike sneakers sold out in minutes in June when they were released, and now they\u2019re reselling for double their retail value.<\/p>\n Alex Lotier, CEO of the sneaker media company Culture Media (formerly Culture Kicks), told Glossy that there\u2019s immense buzz around WNBA footwear.<\/p>\n \u201cBetween Caitlin\u2019s Nike V Protros, Angel Reese\u2019s new \u2018Mebound\u2019 sneakers, and NBA players like Jrue Holiday, Tyrese Haliburton, Jalen Brunson, Payton Pritchard and Derrick Lively all wearing Sabrina Ionescu\u2019s signature shoe<\/a> last season, WNBA player footwear is hotter than anything coming out of the NBA right now,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n But Lotier said he\u2019s skeptical that any of the brands who are benefiting from the WNBA\u2019s starpower will make a statement in support of the players. As of Wednesday evening, none of the major fashion brands who have worked with players like Reese or Clark have made any public statement about the protest. Multiple brands that have worked with WNBA players, including Etsy and Skims, either declined to comment on the issue of athlete pay for this story or did not respond to a request for comment. The \u201cPay Us What You Owe Us\u201d shirt worn by the players has been officially licensed by the WNBA Players Association and is available for purchase to the public, where there has been broad support<\/a> for the players.<\/p>\n But many of the brands that work with WNBA players have waded into cultural debates in the past. Nike famously stood behind<\/a> Colin Kaepernick when he was criticized for kneeling during the national anthem. When brands partner with WNBA players or the league, they often couch it in language about empowering women, equality and breaking barriers.<\/p>\n \u201cOur brand DNA is rooted in inclusivity, representation and women\u2019s empowerment, which are values shared with the WNBA,\u201d Kim Kardashian said in a press release when the Skims collaboration with the WNBA was released last year. <\/p>\n On the men\u2019s side of sports, brands like Nike and Reebok have navigated labor disputes between players and leagues mostly by staying out of it<\/a>, according to Geoff Miller, senior director at global branding consultancy Interbrand.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is a risky approach in the women\u2019s game, with many companies sponsoring leagues, teams and players because these partnerships provide opportunities to associate their own brands with equality and positive change beyond sports,\u201d Miller said.<\/p>\n \u201cDo brands need to make big political statements? Not necessarily,\u201d said Julie Matos, a stylist who has worked with celebrities like Sofia Vergara and Gwyneth Paltrow. \u201cBut they do need to move with intention, fair contracts, co-created campaigns and transparency in partnerships. Staying neutral right now just isn\u2019t a good look.\u201d<\/p>\n Stat of the week<\/p>\n The tech companies Reach3 Insights and Rival Technologies released a joint report this week on back-to-school shopping, for which they surveyed shoppers in the U.S. and Canada. The verdict? Despite gains in the market, 27% of Americans and 25% of Canadians plan to cut back on back-to-school purchases this year. <\/p>\n The shopping they will do will likely be on the smaller-scale side. Sixty-one percent of Americans and 55% of Canadians said they\u2019re unlikely to make a big-ticket purchase in the near future.<\/p>\n News to know<\/p>\n The CFDA released the calendar for this fall\u2019s New York Fashion Week. Notably, the event will see the return of Alexander Wang to the schedule \u2014\u00a0the designer has not shown at NYFW since 2018.<\/p>\n The U.S. reached a unique and unprecedented<\/a> trade deal this week that will potentially see the Japanese government create a $500 million investment fund for President Trump to direct at his discretion. Most notably for fashion brands like Commes des Garcons and Issey Miyake, which produce their clothing in Japan, the deal would settle tariffs on Japanese goods at 15%.<\/p>\n Skims is deepening its connection to women\u2019s sports this week by becoming an official sponsor<\/a> of League One Volleyball. Skims has previously been a sponsor of the WNBA.<\/p>\n Inside Glossy\u2019s coverage<\/p>\n Brands are discovering their sales associates are among their most valuable influencers<\/a><\/p>\n American Eagle is investing in Sydney Sweeney and the Sphere for its largest-ever fall campaign<\/a><\/p>\n