Speedo was ready to drop Lochte days before they did
Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte captured the attention of the world when he claimed to have been robbed at gunpoint. But when it was revealed he exaggerated that story, the world quickly turned its back on him. And so did his sponsors.
Swimwear maker Speedo was the most high-profile of sponsors to pull their deal.
But Manny Chirico, Chairman and CEO of PVH Corp (PVH), which owns Speedo, said the company made decision to drop its endorsement of swimmer Ryan Lochte a few days before it announced. But Chirico said they waited to make the announcement until the conclusion of the Olympics because they didn’t want to take attention away from the games.
“I think his actions dictated our response,” Chirico said. “We just can’t condone that kind of behavior. He not only embarrassed himself, he embarrassed his teammates, he embarrassed Brazil and the United States team over all.”
Chirico added that it was an inevitable decision.
“It was an easy decision on one level but it was a very unfortunate decision we had to make. He’s been part of the Speedo family for over 10 years. We felt badly about having to do it. But our brand and company stand for a certain core set of values and he didn’t stand up to those.”
PVH has made an effort to be associated with sports stars and celebrities across its brands. Musician Justin Bieber was featured in the spring 2015 Calvin Klein underwear advertising campaign; model and social media star Kendall Jenner was featured in Calvin Klein’s underwear campaign in Fall 2015; supermodel and millennial icon Gigi Hadid will serve as the global brand ambassador for Tommy Hilfiger’s women’s collections beginning in the fall; and tennis star Rafael Nadal was signed as global ambassador for Tommy Hilfiger underwear.
“You always take a little bit of a risk about behavior outside the brand,” Chirico said, but added that it’s been an important strategy for the company to associate with these figures.
