COUNTERKICKS.com’s John Brilliant reported Knicks G Baron Davis and Li-Ning “have split up.” Li-Ning “initiated an early termination” of the endorsement deal, which was originally signed in ‘08 and “not due to expire until later in 2013.” Sources said that the five-year contract “was paying him in the neighborhood of $1.5 million per year.” The split “officially commenced last week on April 1.” Brilliant noted Davis, “who has worn on court all this season his original Li-Ning BD Doom signature shoe,” has been seen sporting “the Nike Kobe shoe in all of his April Knicks games thus far” (COUNTERKICKS.com, 4/10).
OLYMPIC MERCHANDISE: MARKETING magazine’s John Reynolds reported U.K.-based retailer John Lewis has begun to “roll out 29 dedicated Olympic shops within its department stores, as part of its tier-three sponsorship” of the London Olympics and Paralympics. John Lewis already has a London 2012 store "within its Stratford store in East London, which has been open for around six months.” But Tuesday “marked the roll out of the other stores.” The department store chain is “the official retailer of London 2012 and, within its London 2012 stores, will sell mugs, clothes, sports equipment, homeware and jewellery.” Some products "will be exclusive” to the store (MARKETINGMAGAZINE.co.uk, 4/10).
SUPERMARKET SWEEP: Kroger announced today it will be the title sponsor of Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s expanded NASCAR weekend this summer. The weekend, which will put the NASCAR Nationwide Series and Grand-Am Road Racing joining alongside NASCAR Sprint Cup’s Brickyard 400, will be known as the Kroger Super Weekend. Financial terms of the deal were not available (Tripp Mickle, SportsBusiness Journal).
