Regardless of your team loyalties, it is hard to deny that Tom Brady has earned himself a reputation as a premier player. This premier image spreads to other elements of his public life too, including his famous supermodel spouse, widely reported clean and complicated eating habits, and the relatively limited set of brands that he agrees to endorse.

The latest, Aston Martin, is a luxury car brand renowned for its beautiful designs, British history, and appearance in multiple James Bond movies. In this sense, it fits well with the other brands that Brady has lent his face or name to, such as Tag Heuer watches and UGG boots. Whereas many athletes prioritize endorsements of athletic apparel, Brady has only a limited engagement with Under Amour.

The Aston Martin partnership also goes beyond just putting Brady in conventional commercials. Instead, over the course of their long-term partnership, the quarterback will create, or “curate” in the brand’s terminology, his own personalized version of the brand’s Vanquish S model. A series of videos will document the process, revealing not only the various options available to consumers but also new insights into Brady’s own preferences. These preferences clearly revolve around high-performance, luxury cars; awarded a Chevy Colorado truck when he was named the MVP of Super Bowl XLIX, he turned around and gave it to one of his teammates. Apparently, who needs a truck when you have an Aston Martin?

Discussion Question:

1. How should Aston Martin measure the level of success achieved through this marketing campaign?

Source: Daniel Bentley, “Aston Martin Drafts Tom Brady for Marketing Push,” Fortune, May 17, 2017