Vanessa took to Instagram to announce the significant news.
“We’re excited to announce our partnership with Nike is going to continue!” she said. “I am so proud that my husband’s shoes are still the most worn by players on NBA courts and that the demand for his shoes remain so desired by his fans around the world.
“With this new partnership, fans will soon be able to have access to Kobe and Gigi Nike product for years to come and with Nike donating 100% of the net proceeds yearly for Gianna’s shoes to our Mamba and Mambacita Sports Foundation (M&MSF).
“I am also grateful that Nike and I will work together to establish a youth basketball center in Southern California that will share the Mamba Mentality with youth athletes for generations to come.
“I know this is an inspiring moment for my husband and daughter’s global fans, and I am very appreciative of each and every one of you! With Gratitude for every fan around the world supporting Kobe and Gigi’s Legacy.”
Nearly 20% of NBA players have worn a Nike Kobe sneaker for a game since Bryant, along with his daughter, Gianna, and seven others died in a January 2020 helicopter crash. During the 2019-20 season, 102 of the 322 total players competing in the league’s restart at the Walt Disney World Resort wore a Kobe sneaker.
From Nike’s perspective, it’ll look to provide young athletes access to youth sports, with several initiatives planned globally to honor Bryant’s legacy.
“Kobe Bryant means so much to so many of us, not just NBA fans but globally beyond the game,” John Donahoe, Nike’s president and CEO, said in a statement. “His impact in growing the sport, particularly encouraging women and young people to pick it up, endures as one of his deepest, lasting legacies. Together with Vanessa, we hope to honor Kobe and Gigi by championing a new generation for many years to come.”
According to Nike, the first release from the renewed partnership could arrive as soon as May 1, which would have been Gianna Bryant’s 16th birthday. Styled in “Gigi’s” black and white “Mamba Ballers” team uniform colors, with gold accents, that shoe was originally produced just before last April’s contract expiration, and never officially released.
“The first new shoe from the partnership, the Kobe 6 Protro ‘Mambacita Sweet 16’ will honor Gigi Bryant,” Nike said in a statement. “All proceeds from the shoe will benefit the Mamba and Mambacita Sports Foundation.”
Let’s Meet Kobe Bryant,
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Kobe Bean Bryant (/ˈkoʊbiː/ KOH-bee; August 23, 1978 – January 26, 2020) was an American professional basketball player. A shooting guard, he spent his entire 20-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Widely regarded as one of the greatest basketball players of all time, Bryant won five NBA championships, was an 18-time All-Star, a 15-time member of the All-NBA Team, a 12-time member of the All-Defensive Team, the 2008 NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP), and a two-time NBA Finals MVP. Bryant also led the NBA in scoring twice, and ranks fourth in league all-time regular season and postseason scoring. He was posthumously voted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2020.
Born in Philadelphia and partly raised in Italy, Bryant was recognized as the top American high-school basketball player while at Lower Merion. The son of former NBA player Joe Bryant, he declared for the 1996 NBA draft and was selected by the Charlotte Hornets with the 13th overall pick; he was then traded to the Lakers. As a rookie, Bryant earned a reputation as a high-flyer by winning the 1997 Slam Dunk Contest, and was named an All-Star by his second season, and led the Lakers to three consecutive NBA championships from 2000 to 2002.
After the Lakers lost the 2004 NBA Finals, O’Neal was traded and Bryant became the cornerstone of the Lakers. He led the NBA in scoring in the 2005–06 and 2006–07 seasons. On January 22, 2006, he scored a career-high 81 points; the second most points scored in a single NBA game, behind Wilt Chamberlain’s 100-point game. Bryant led the team to consecutive championships in 2009 and 2010, both times being named NBA Finals MVP. He continued to be among the top players in the league through the 2012–13 season, when he suffered a torn achilles tendon at age 34. His next two seasons were cut short by injuries to his knee and shoulder, respectively. Citing physical decline, Bryant retired after the 2015–16 season.
The all-time leading scorer in Lakers history, Bryant was the first guard in NBA history to play 20 seasons. His 18 All-Star designations are the second most all time, and he has the most consecutive appearances as a starter. Bryant’s four NBA All-Star Game MVP Awards are tied with Bob Pettit for the most in NBA history. He gave himself the nickname “Black Mamba” in the mid-2000s, and the epithet became widely adopted by the general public. At the 2008 and 2012 Summer Olympics, he won two gold medals as a member of the U.S. national team. In 2018, he won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film for the film Dear Basketball (2017).
Bryant died, along with his daughter Gianna and seven others, in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, California in January 2020. A number of tributes and memorials were subsequently issued, including renaming the All-Star MVP Award in his honor. In 2021, Bryant was honored as one of the greatest players in league history, being named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team.
Business ventures
ABOUT BRYANT STIBEL
Bryant Stibel was founded in 2013 to provide strategy, capital, and operational support to businesses with a focus across technology, media, and data. The Bryant Stibel platform is unique in that it combines the creative vision of Kobe Bryant, one of the world’s most well-known and respected sports icons, with Jeff Stibel, a proven market-driven operator and serial entrepreneur, alongside a team of proven public and private company senior management operating partners at Stibel & Co. The team has extensive experience operating technology and data-driven businesses, as well as deploying capital out of its core platforms, Bryant Stibel Growth Equity, Bryant Stibel Ventures and Bryant Stibel Value.
Together, Bryant and Stibel partner with companies looking to unlock value and drive sustainable long-term growth. Stibel & Co.’s Office of the Chairman adds additional value by providing strategic advisory and tactical support to management teams and stakeholders seeking a collaborative and constructive partner.
Along the way, Bryant Stibel has built relationships and helped execute business transformations with a variety of entrepreneurs and industry leaders.
KOBE’S LEGENDARY LEGACY
As in sports, Kobe’s efforts in the world of business and investing are leaving a legacy we can all be proud of.
To date, Bryant Stibel as a firm has invested in over 40 businesses with approximately 75% still active and growing. While 2020 had its fair share of ups and downs, over the past year we saw our portfolio grow and our companies masterfully handle macro events, most namely COVID-19, and continue to flourish.
Bryant Stibel companies such as Epic Games and Scopely raised huge rounds to fuel their growth. Other portfolio companies such as TeamViewer, LegalZoom, ringDNA, VIPKid, Tile, etc. continued to grow their businesses and market share significantly. Cholula – our favorite hot sauce company – was acquired by McCormick for $800M. And lastly, Art of Sport, a company we helped start and Kobe actively engaged with, can now be found rolled out nationwide through all 1,600 Target stores and the company is well on its way to becoming a global brand.
Many may not know that Kobe was a strong proponent of financial literacy and providing athletes with access to smart financial advice during and after their careers. In that spirit, we created partnerships with a handful of firms to enable athletes to get access to global deal flow. Since setting down this path, our partnership with Permira, a global investment firm founded in 1985 with a total committed capital of approximately $50BN, has invested hundreds of millions of dollars into companies across the globe over the past few years with our participation through Bryant Stibel Permira Growth Opportunities Fund I.
Lastly, but most importantly, we saw our community and social responsibility efforts accelerate, focusing on the things that mean the most to each of us – helping others and doing what’s right. The partners of our firm continued to stay active lending our time, money and resources to the causes that mean the most to us. We are proud to work with a wide range of partners and organizations to focus on racial equity and inclusion, education and giving back to our community and will continue to make that a significant part of our mission.
REMEMBERING KOBE BRYANT
A MESSAGE FROM OUR PARTNERS
On January 26, 2020, the world lost Kobe Bryant, one of the most well-known and respected sports icons. We lost our friend and business partner.
Kobe was more than a founding partner at Bryant Stibel. He was a family man and a creative visionary who quickly became an accomplished entrepreneur and investor. While he was known as one of the greatest athletes of all time, his time off the court was becoming just as remarkable.
Kobe was a five-time NBA champion, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, an NBA Most Valuable Player, a 15-time All-NBA player, an 18-time NBA All-Star and the NBA’s No. 4 all-time scoring leader. As CEO of Kobe Inc. and Granity Studios, Kobe became a New York Times best-selling author for his young adult Wizenard Series, and an Academy Award recipient for best animated short film, “Dear Basketball.”
Kobe partnered with Stibel & Co. at Bryant Stibel’s inception in 2013 as his basketball career was entering its final years. He was one of 10 General Partners at the firm, bringing a passion and entrepreneurial spirit that helped launch and shape the firm’s strategic direction. Kobe recognized that entrepreneurs shared a similar work ethic and dedication that is found in the very best athletes. He shared a passion for helping businesses creatively tell their story and find their brand truth.
We will forever be heartbroken to lose Kobe as a colleague and a friend. He of all people would want us to continue helping entrepreneurs realize their dreams and create sustainable, long-term success stories.
THE WIZENARD SERIES:
TRAINING CAMP
THE WIZENARD SERIES:
LEGACY & THE QUEEN
EPOCA:
THE TREE OF ECROF
MAMBA MENTALITY:
HOW I PLAY
CONTACT BRYANT STIBEL →
If you are interested in working together, send us an inquiry.
Here’s what our partners have to say:
“Bryant Stibel is very focused on aligning with the shareholders and with the management team in execution.
They don’t have any conflicting interests – they are there to help. They’re not there to sell, they don’t want credit. They literally are there saying, ‘We don’t need credit, but we do want to add value because we are equity holders.’
And I think that only comes when both the company and our partner are tremendously confident in each other’s capabilities.”
“Bryant Stibel is very operationally focused, meaning that they can add actual value and they’re very much getting engaged with solving transactional and other issues versus acting in a purely advisory capacity.
While other firms tend to act more in an advisory capacity, Bryant Stibel can provide advice while also leveraging their network of contacts to actually deliver changes and operational results for you at your request. That’s been a huge difference.”
“Bryant Stibel’s philosophy of serving the CEO allows for a powerful partnership to deliver value. I conducted my own diligence on what it was like working with this team and it all came back incredibly positive.
They’ve exceeded expectations in the short time they’ve been involved at Tile. It’s amazing to have them in your corner.“
CJ PROBER
Bryant established Kobe Inc. to own and grow brands in the sports industry. The initial investment was a 10% stake in the Bodyarmor SuperDrink company for $6 million in March 2014. The headquarters are in Newport Beach, California.[499] With The Coca-Cola Company purchasing a minority stake in the company in August 2018, the valuation of Bryant’s stake rose to approximately $200 million.
In 2013, Bryant launched a production company called Granity Studios, which developed different media, ranging from films to television shows and novels.
In 2018, Bryant and Sports Academy launched Mamba Sports Academy, a joint athletic-training business venture. The academy established locations in Thousand Oaks and Redondo Beach, California.
Philanthropy
Bryant was the official ambassador for After-School All-Stars (ASAS), an American non-profit organization that provides comprehensive after-school programs to children in thirteen US cities. Bryant also started the Kobe Bryant China Fund which partnered with the Soong Ching Ling Foundation, a charity backed by the Chinese government. The Kobe Bryant China Fund raises money within China earmarked for education and health programs. On November 4, 2010, Bryant appeared alongside Zach Braff at the Call of Duty: Black Ops launch event at the Santa Monica Airport, where they presented a $1 million check to the Call of Duty Endowment, an Activision-founded nonprofit organization that helps veterans transition to civilian careers after their military service has ended.
Together with his wife, Bryant founded the Kobe and Vanessa Bryant Family Foundation (KVBFF). Its goals are “helping young people in need, encouraging the development of physical and social skills through sports and assisting the homeless”. Bryant spoke of the injustice aimed at homeless people who are blamed for their situation, saying that homelessness should not be ignored or made a low priority. Bryant said he wanted more out of life than just a successful basketball career.
Bryant and his wife Vanessa were founding donors of the National Museum of African American History and Culture, with Bryant also donating his uniform he that he wore in the 2008 NBA Finals, the year he was named the league MVP. During his lifetime, Bryant granted over two hundred requests for the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
