Watch Victor Wembanyama’s debut for Barcode sports drink

NBA phenom Victor Wembanyama is starring in his first spot for Barcode, the start-up sports drink brand that snagged the rookie star to an endorsement deal earlier this year. It marks the first big campaign to date for the three-year-old brand, which is attempting to gain momentum in the crowded sports drink category by plugging a plant-based formula that includes mushroom extracts. The ad plays into Wembanyama’s reputation as a singular athlete determined to cut his own path to success—including his choice of sports drink and his approach to brand deals. The ad shows Wembanyama, bathed in green light, speaking in his native French. A film montage of his highlights plays as Wembanyama watches. He is then shown being scanned and drinking a Barcode. “It was me, it was always me. It had to be me,” the captions read. “It’s in my DNA.” “I think we wanted to play on the idea that he’s had these expectations, and he’s been destined to be this athlete, this great player. And now he’s ready to take on that challenge,” Cooper Davis, who directed the commercial for Gunn Productions, said in an interview. Read more: Meet Victor Wembanyama, future marketing star The San Antonio Spurs rookie is known as “The Alien,” after a LeBron James remark about his unique package of skills. The ad was meant to have “a euphoric feel to it, kind of extraterrestrial,” Davis said. “We wanted to show that he was more worldly than an NBA player.” Check out the latest Ad Age events and award programs The ad is targeted for live sports on streaming services including Hulu, ESPN+ and Peacock between Nov. 7 and Jan. 7. It will also run during the NBA’s block of Christmas games on ESPN+. Wembanyama will also appear on billboards for Barcode in San Antonio and Austin, Texas. Ads on branded trucks will run in New York and Los Angeles as well as in San Antonio and Austin. Equity stake Wembanyama’s decision to back Barcode is notable, considering that big-spending competitors such as Coca-Cola-owned Powerade and PepsiCo’s Gatorade often try to secure fast-rising sports stars early. According to Barcode founder and CEO Mubarak “Bar” Malik, Wembanyama’s iconoclasm played into his decision to go with Barcode when other sports drinks were presumably in play. “The anomaly of him, and just being different and being an outlier in the game of basketball, from his skills to his personality to the brand deals that he did,” was one reason he selected Barcode, Malik said. The product’s better-for-you formulation, and the opportunity to be the face of the brand, were the other reasons, he added. Malik declined to disclose terms of the agreement but said Wembanyama has also taken an equity position in Barcode. “As Kobe Bryant showed with Bodyarmor, if it's done well and done correctly, there’s a bigger opportunity value-wise for him as an investor versus a sponsor,” Malik said. The late NBA legend was an early investor in Bodyarmor and played a sizeable role in its marketing, including holding the creative director title for some ads. When Coca-Cola bought full control of Bodyarmor in 2021, Bryant’s estate netted $400 million from its investment, the Wall Street Journal reported at the time. Wembanyama also has brand deals with Nike, Fanatics and 2K Games. Malik is an athletic trainer who spent eight years as director of performance for the New York Knicks. He said he developed Barcode because “there wasn’t anything that I felt I could give guys during practices and games that met what they needed from a micronutrient standpoint.” He calls Barcode the first sports drink that includes vitamins D, B6, B12, magnesium and “adaptogens,” which refer to functional mushrooms meant to manage stress. A 16.9-ounce serving has 30 calories and 2 grams of sugar. Read more: Functional mushrooms marketing guide Malik started to do small production runs in 2018, distributing the product to NBA players and private clients. One of them, actress Halle Berry, spoke favorably about the brand as she trained for the film “Bruised.” Another fan, NBA star Kyle Kuzma, became a Barcode co-founder as it launched officially in 2020. Barcode currently is available in five flavors (a sixth flavor will be announced for Wembanyama next year) and is sold online and in natural foods stores. Distribution includes Amazon, where 12-packs are being sold for about $35. A full rollout to conventional stores is expected next year, Malik said. Packages are conspicuous for the large UPC code that makes up the label. Malik said the design incorporates the actual product code while serving as a metaphor referred to by Wembanyama in the ad: A code is a person’s DNA. “Barcode stood out; it’s different. The branding is all white. It’s younger and it’s gender-neutral,” Malik said. An endorsement-filled category While Gatorade still dominates the sports drink category, smaller rivals such as Prime and Barcode are charting victories. Prime, which markets sports and energy drinks, is owned by Congo Brands and backed by social media stars Logan Paul and Olajide “KSI” Olatunji. Earlier this year, Prime scored a deal to be the official sports drink of the UFC. Prime has gained popularity among younger drinkers, but also has drawn scrutiny from Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who has called on the Food and Drug Administration to investigate the product, alleging the caffeine levels in its energy drinks amount to a “serious health concern for the kids.” Prime energy drinks have 200 mg of caffeine per serving, while its sports drinks, marketed as “hydration” drinks, are caffeine-free. Other startup sports drinks have faltered. BioSteele, which made waves via big endorsement deals with Patrick Mahomes and Luka Dončić, filed for bankruptcy in September. Barcode recently announced a deal to become the official sports drink of the Brooklyn Nets. Its agreement with Wembanyama was announced in July. “We hope this will give us a solidified reputation that we’re here for the long haul,” said Malik. “Adding a young talent like Victor, with his potential and what he can do on the basketball court, and what he can do with his brand, it will amplify ourselves. “We also think it will give people hope,” he continued. “I’m a minority and there hasn’t been a lot of brands that have diversity among its founders.” Ad Age World’s Largest Advertisers 2023 Ad spending, rankings and analysis for the top 100 advertisers Click here

Watch Victor Wembanyama’s debut for Barcode sports drink

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