Gen Z, Millennial designer brand platform Revolve partners with LOVB

The GIST: Yesterday, leading volleyball brand LOVB Pro announced a first-of-its-kind partnership with Revolve, the designer clothing platform beloved by Gen Z and Millennial shoppers. The deal makes Revolve the league’s official online fashion retail partner and highlights innovative ways the clothing industry can appeal to young consumers via sport. Fit-ting.

The details: The partnership involves a campaign featuring five young LOVB players and a Revolve jersey patch on all six teams’ jerseys. The brand is also sponsoring a “Timeout Fancam Fit Check” at LOVB games, as well as a runway-inspired tunnel walk experience for athletes.

• Tunnel walks have been an easy way for companies to activate around women athletes, from Woody Creek Distillers sponsoring PWHL walk-ins to Google advertising its AI-powered image search with what WNBA stars wear. Walk, walk, fashion, baby.

The why: For fashion brands that predominantly cater to girls and women, it makes sense to partner with women’s leagues, especially when women’s sports fans are 2.8x more likely to purchase products endorsed by women athletes compared to other influencers.

• And if companies want to reach teenage girls specifically, it’s smart to utilize the volleyball space since LOVB attracts Revolve’s core demographic: Gen Z girls and women. Volleyball is the top team sport for high school girls by participation, and LOVB is the largest club volleyball community in the U.S. with over 16K players, 95% of whom are Gen Zers.

Zooming out: Revolve clearly has its finger on the pulse of what appeals to young consumers, but it’s not the only brand focused on growing its Gen Z audience through volleyball. Adidas — which has been looking to make further inroads with Zoomers — inked its own LOVB partnership in June that saw the apparel giant design uniforms with athlete input.

• Brands looking to target Gen Z — which is expected to be the largest, richest, and highest-spending generation globally — should cozy up to LOVB before tipoff. Smooth like butter.