NIL Store Surpasses 10,000 Signed Student-Athletes
Officially licensed NIL apparel platform NIL Store powered by Campus Ink hit a major milestone ahead of the Final Four, surpassing 10,000 athletes signed. With recent store openings in March including Arkansas, Auburn, Baylor, Gonzaga, Houston, Ole Miss and Virginia, the NIL Store's athlete network is now more than 10,400 strong to date.
Although the NIL Store was built for any and all athletes to engage, the star power - especially in basketball - is second to none across the industry. Athletes signed to the platform include Final Four stars Zach Edey of Purdue and Paige Bueckers, in addition to SEC Player of the Year Angel Reese of LSU, freshman sensation Jared McCain of Duke and three-time ACC Player of the Year Elizabeth Kitley of Virginia Tech, among many others.
The NIL Store tipped off March Madness with 53 total program partners - up from 19 a year ago, including both National Champions UConn and LSU - in action and head into Final Four weekend with four teams: both UConn men’s and women’s, Purdue and Iowa.
"Surpassing this milestone is a testament to not only the hard work and dedication of our staff, but the trust and belief we've earned from our school partners and athletes to serve their officially licensed apparel needs," Adam Cook, VP of Campus Ink Sports shared with Sports Illustrated. "When you put athletes first and pay them well, good things happen. We're grateful for all the support we've received across the country and look forward to our next 10,000 athletes."
Milestone Unlocked 🚀
— The NIL Store (@nil_store) April 4, 2024
The NIL Store powered by Campus Ink has surpassed 10,000+ athletes signed!
More: https://t.co/K37ZDlTkLH pic.twitter.com/vULMckg6oT
Backed by Mark Cuban, Campus Ink's NIL store debuted with the Illinois NIL Store in 2021 with its first student-athlete partner, Brandin Podziemski, now of the Golden State Warriors. Since then. the NIL Store network has expanded to 60 schools nationwide.
MICHAEL EHRLICH
Michael Ehrlich is a seasoned sports marketing executive with experience across the global sports brand, athlete representation, media and education sides of the business. The Founder and CEO of Playbook Marketing, Ehrlich consults with brands on all things NIL and athlete partnerships, advises student-athletes on their personal brand building endeavors and is an adjunct professor at his alma mater, the University of Southern California where he teaches a course on athlete communications and marketing. As a writer, his previous bylines include Boardroom, Business of College Sports, DIME Magazine and UPROXX, among others. You can follow him across social media at @MichaelEhrlich and reach out via michael@playbook-marketing.com