Dwyane Wade

Anita  Elberse; Jennifer  Schoppe

Case | HBS Case Collection | September 2016 (Revised April 2020)

Dwyane Wade

by Anita Elberse and Jennifer Schoppe

Abstract

In July 2016, while on his annual China tour to help promote the sportswear brand Li-Ning, basketball superstar Dwyane Wade and his long-time business manager, Lisa Joseph-Metelus, face a decision regarding one of his other business partnerships—that with the American company Stance, known for its colorful socks. Involved with the young company since 2013, Wade quickly established himself as Stance’s most successful brand ambassador. But recently, several younger players had also come on board as endorsers, and Stance had entered into an overall sponsorship deal with the NBA. With his Stance deal coming up for renewal in October 2016, what kind of deal should Wade and Joseph-Metelus propose to Stance? And how would a newly structured partnership fit into Wade’s overall business portfolio—including his plans for after his active basketball career?

Keywords: branding; fashion; superstar; celebrity endorsement; innovation; Creative Industries; Talent; general management; Sports; Entertainment; Brands and Branding; Marketing; Management; Strategy; Personal Development and Career; Consumer Products Industry; Fashion Industry; Sports Industry; China;

Language: English

Format: Print

30 pages

Educators Purchase

Citation:

Elberse, Anita, and Jennifer Schoppe. "Dwyane Wade." Harvard Business School Case 517-035, September 2016. (Revised April 2020.)

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Case | HBS Case Collection | June 2020

Big Hit Entertainment and Blockbuster Band BTS: K-Pop Goes Global

Anita Elberse and Lizzy Woodham

Bang Si-Hyuk (‘Hitman Bang’) is the founder and co-chief executive officer of Big Hit Entertainment, the company behind BTS, a ‘K-pop’ band that has found unparalleled success around the globe—a remarkable feat given that most of their songs are in Korean. It is March 1, 2020. With its latest album, the band has now scored its fourth chart-topping album in the U.S. in less than two years. The band’s popularity has been extremely lucrative: by some estimates, the BTS ecosystem accounts for a staggering $4.9 billion of South Korea’s GDP. While K-pop has been dominated by three large companies—SM, YG, and JYP—since the mid 1990s, with BTS Bang arguably has created a K-pop phenomenon that is more global than any act the ‘big three’ have ever overseen. And whereas K-pop is traditionally associated with long-term, exclusive contracts between companies and their acts that pay the talent relatively modestly and give them little control, Bang seeks to foster a more balanced relationship with his superstar act. Is BTS well-positioned to sustain its success? Can Big Hit replicate that success with the select few other acts in its portfolio? And what does that say about the future of K-pop, and the manner in which music companies will manage the relationships with their talent?

Keywords: music; entertainment; media; superstars; Talent; talent development; contracts; labor economics; marketing; strategy; general management;