Drew King Interview (Negotiation and Deal Making)

Drew King is a Professional Surfer, BMX, and Motocross rider from Ewa Beach, Hawaii. Besides being a multi-faceted athlete, Drew is a businessman and a philanthropist. He has used his athletic talents, charisma, and popularity to raise thousands of dollars for charities. Recently, he rode a BMX bike over 150 miles to raise money for autism awareness. 


"I really want to help other people’s lives in the best way I can and if I have the means to do so why not help someone else. I’ve been really fortunate in my life and I want others to feel the same thing when I wake up,” -Drew King


Due to his achievements and talents, Drew has gained many sponsorships over the years. I interviewed Drew about how he and his agent negotiated his contracts.


"When getting a sponsorship my agent and I set up what contests I go to and how much money I get per contest. I get paid based on where I place in the contest." 


Drew negotiates how many contests he will participate in, how much he gets paid for travel, and which contests he will participate in. With his latest contract, his sponsor LOST wanted him to participate in twelve contests this year. Drew only wanted to participate in the three biggest events that year. Through negotiation they worked towards a mutual benefit:


"It came down to the fact that there are so many contests a year. I'm a full time college student. I'm not going to participate in a small contest that won't give me enough exposure. I will even turn down some events that will pay me more, in exchange for ones that will give more media exposure." -Drew King

Drew agreed to surf at 5 events that year and only events that were hand picked by himself.

When he was negotiating with the shoe company DC, they wanted him to ride certain contests and relocate to California. Drew wanted to be able to stay in school and ride any contest he wanted. While DC was one of the biggest shoe sponsorships available, he knew that he had LOST and Rockstar in his back pocket, so he turned down their offer. The other sponsorship offers Drew had were his BATNA in the negotiation.

Instead of DC, Drew with with OSRIS for his shoe sponsor. They were willing to let him surf any event he wanted and we'rent pressuring him to relocate. Their offer gave Drew less money and exposure, but it gave him the autonomy he was looking for. Drew's sponsors also allow him to branch out and participate in any sport he wishes. Whether it be surfing, BMX, MX, rally cars, or skateboarding, Drew is always participating in something. He loves the freedom to participate in what he wants which is why he chose the sponsors he did.

In conclusion, I received an immense amount of insight from interviewing Drew. I learned first hand how negotiation and deal making is used in professional sports. When Drew is negotiating his deals with his sponsors he practices many of the tools we have talked about in our class discussions. 

http://www.lostenterprises.com/

http://www.dcshoes.com/

http://www.osirisshoes.com/

http://www.hercampus.com/school/umaine/campus-celebrity-drew-king

http://www.fatbmx.com/modules/news/article.php?storyid=8338