Sania's brand value dips ahead of wedding

Sania Mirza seems to be losing her brand value just ahead of her marriage with former Pakistan cricket captain Shoaib Malik, suggest reports.

Sania Mirza seems to be losing her brand value just ahead of her marriage with former Pakistan cricket captain Shoaib Malik, suggest reports.

Cadbury Bournvita, the brand that Sania endorses, has decided not to renew its contract with the tennis player. “Our contract with Sania Mirza was signed for a period of one year that expired last month and we do not intend to renew the contract,” a Cadbury India spokesman told Economic Times. He refused to cite any reason.

“Unfortunately, Sania has not been able to play consistently for the last 16 months which has resulted in a drop in rankings,” Andreas Gellner, MD Adidas India, which signed a multiple-year endorsement contract with the tennis player in 2008 told ET.

Agreeing with Gellner, Manish Porwal, managing director of marketing solutions firm Alchemist told ET, “The negative press surrounding her marriage has definitely depleted her brand value and image with the advertisers currently."

The only Indian tennis player to command Rs 1-2 crore per endorsement has been struggling with her brand image ever since her wedding was announced.

Quick facts:

2005-06: Sania bagged endorsements with the likes of Tata Indicom, Hyundai Getz, Lotto Sport Italia, Sprite, GVK Industries, Sahara India, Atlas Cycles and Tata Tea.

2007: Hyundai, Tata Indicom, Sahara India and Lotto Sport Italia were off her endorsement list.

2008: Adidas signed a multiple year contract with her.

2009: Mirza signed deals with TVS Scooty and Cadbury Bournvita.