Celebrity Products - A Step too Far?

One of the first blog pieces I ever wrote was a review in which I praised the successful relationship between Gary Linekar and Walkers Crisps. In my opinion this is one of the best examples of a celebrity endorsement.

The reason it's successful is due to the way the brand and the celebrity work in perfect harmony.

There is however one celebrity (oddly enough, another sportsperson) who has gone a step further in bonding a brand with a personality.

Tennis superstar Maria Sharapova may soon become ‘Sugarpova’ for this year’s US Open. Owned by Sharapova herself, the sweets company Sugarpova claims their sweets reflect the tennis player's "fun, fashionable, sweet side", this is further reflected in their advertising.

Personally, I haven’t tried the sweets myself, so I can’t comment on the quality but the brand does appear to have a really sharp style to it. The website looks great, the packaging is stylish and the PR photos of Sharapova herself integrate perfectly with the brand.

However Sharapova is now trying to get her name temporarily changed to Sugarpova in time for the US Open so as to maximise public awareness of the brand. The question I would ask though, is this a step too far?

It’s not the first time a sportsperson has changed their name to promote a brand – Jimmy White became Jimmy Brown for a short while to promote HP Sauce – but it does seem somewhat bizarre and just maybe a tad over the top.

And yet I do think to some degree that in Maria Sharapova’s situation it's more than acceptable, because from the content on the website its obvious that the brand is very personal to her, also some of the profits raised will be donated to her charity.

On the other hand what’s the next step? Personally I want to see Wayne Rooney, Robin van Persie and Ryan Giggs playing for Man U, not Thomas Cook up front, Mister Potato in the center and Chevrolet dashing down the wing.

edit - this was written before Maria Sharapova pulled out of the US Open.