Naomi Osaka is a trailblazer and today she added another accomplishment to her rapidly growing resume.
In a story first reported by Sportico, the tennis star revealed she left her agency, IMG, and started her own sports agency, EVOLVE, with her agent, Stuart Duguid.
While other big name athletes such as LeBron James and Kevin Durant launched their own agencies, Osaka is, per Sportico, the “first female athlete at that level to take full control of her business endeavors and attempt to build an agency.”
This won’t be a super-agency like IMG or CIAA, at least not off the bat.
According to Duguid, they might add one or two athletes to the roster, but the main focus will be growing Naomi’s business “from $50 million a year to $150 million a year.”
In January, Forbes ranked Naomi Osaka as the highest-paid female athlete on their annual list. The 24-year-old Osaka raked in $57.3 million in 2021.
This achievement demonstrates the strength of her brand and her expanding business portfolio.
She launched and runs the skincare brand Kinlò, which is designed specifically for people with melanated skin.
She invested in the North Carolina Courage of the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL), owns an equity stake in Bodyarmor and is sponsored by a slew of companies including Beats Electronics, Nike, Nissin Foods and Tag Heuer.
Naomi’s fierce independence, self-awareness, confidence and business acumen are evident, which is exactly why launching EVOLVE makes sense.
She already has four Grand Slam wins (2018 US Open, 2019 Australian Open, 2020 US Open and 2021 Australian Open) and continues to fight for what’s right off the court by supporting human causes, pursuing equal rights and social justice, and her personal interest in bringing awareness to mental health.
Now she gets to focus on her career through her own business run by her.
