TenZ and Finalmouse gross $7.6M in sold-out mouse collaboration
by Adam Fitch
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Professional VALORANT player Tyson “TenZ” Ngo sold $7.6M worth of gaming mice in just a matter of hours.
The collaboration: A drop of this sort is a rarity in esports.
- TenZ, guided by his supporting team at Prodigy Agency, launched a collaboration with Finalmouse.
- 40,000 co-branded mice were stocked and ready to go when the release dropped on July 17. It only took a matter of hours for stock to run completely dry.
- The VALORANT pro is receiving an unspecified share of the profits from the mouse. With 40,000 being sold at a price of $189.99, he will receive a cut of the $7,599,600 gross proceeds from the product.
The significance: This isn't an everyday occurrence in the industry by any means.
- Ambassadorship and branded products in sports like football are commonplace, especially among the biggest stars, but this is yet to really be adapted across any esports title.
- While the industry undoubtedly has a number of superstars — from TenZ to Call of Duty pro Seth "Scump" Abner to League of Legends veteran Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok — this collaboration is the first of its kind on such a large scale.
- Image rights are a tricky subject in many contracts but it's clear here that TenZ, supported by Prodigy Agency, understands his brand power and influence to the point where freedom to collaborate is top of mind when entering into any team contract.
- As more players build brands and have savvy businesspeople behind them, they'll be able to better capitalize upon their name and image, perhaps the success of TenZ and Finalmouse will be a catalyst for change.