00:00Today on Forbes, how Yonex became a 55-year-old overnight success in tennis.
00:07Roughly a decade after Yonex released its first ever tennis racket in 1969,
00:13the Japanese sports equipment company pursued one of the most impactful sports ambassadors in history,
00:18Billie Jean King.
00:20It wasn't an easy courtship.
00:22Founder Minoru Yoriyama repeatedly sent rackets to the 12-time Grand Slam singles champion,
00:28and each time they were rejected.
00:31But countless hours of tinkering in the factory to appease one of tennis' all-time greats
00:35led to the development of Yonex's famed square-headed racket,
00:39which offered a larger sweet spot without sacrificing control.
00:43And King, along with her doubles partner Martina Navratilova,
00:47began competing with the company's products in 1980.
00:50Alyssa Yoneyama, Yonex's CEO since 2022 and the granddaughter of the company's founder,
00:57says, quote,
01:08Yonex's love affair with tennis' top talent didn't end with King and Navratilova.
01:14The brand's history includes some of the most prominent names the sport has ever seen,
01:18including Monica Sellis, Martina Hingis, and Leighton Hewitt.
01:23These days, Yonex supplies rackets to a small galaxy of tennis stars,
01:27including Casper Rude, No. 9 among the world's highest-paid tennis players,
01:32and 2022 Wimbledon champion Elena Ribacchina,
01:36who also have apparel deals with the brand,
01:38as well as four-time Grand Slam winner Naomi Osaka,
01:42Italy's Jasmine Paolini,
01:44and many of the top American players,
01:46Jessica Pagula, Ben Shelton, Francis Tiafoe, and Tommy Paul.
01:51Despite that all-star roster and more than 50 years in the business,
01:55Yonex has lagged behind its competitors in the American tennis market,
01:59ranking fourth in rackets sold at U.S. specialty stores
02:02and commanding noticeably less buzz than Wilson, Head, and Babula.
02:08Meanwhile, Yonex barely registers on the apparel front,
02:11miles behind juggernauts such as Nike and Adidas.
02:16But Yonex is finally starting to see the growth it has sought for decades.
02:20The brand nearly tripled its U.S. racket market share from 5.6% in 2019
02:25to 14.7% last year, according to data from the Racket Industry Research Group.
02:31And that share climbs to 27.9% when focusing on higher-end models
02:36priced at $250 or more.
02:39Meanwhile, Yonex is becoming more ubiquitous at the professional level.
02:43More than 30% of participants in the women's singles draw
02:46at this year's Australian Open used its rackets,
02:49while 20% did so on the men's side.
02:52Casey Yoneyama, head of global marketing at Yonex, says,
03:09Even with such an emphasis on tennis,
03:12Yonex's business has historically been dominated by another racket sport, badminton.
03:17The Tokyo Stock Exchange-traded company posted banner results
03:20in its most recent fiscal year ending March 31,
03:23with revenue growing nearly 8.8% to a record $769 million,
03:29and operating profit climbing 15.4% to $77 million.
03:34Badminton accounts for 63% of Yonex's annual sales,
03:39stemming from the company's dominance in China and Taiwan
03:42and the sport's rising popularity in India.
03:45Alyssa Yoneyama adds that badminton has,
03:54Tennis proved to be a natural next step,
03:56and the sport's global reach was too good an opportunity to pass up.
04:00In recent years, Yonex has benefited from several positive health
04:04and exercise trends emerging from COVID-19.
04:08Quarantine and social distancing pushed consumers toward outdoor sports
04:12and, Alyssa Yoneyama says,
04:18Additionally, the company has invested heavily on the product side,
04:22opening a new R&D facility in Japan this summer
04:25and constructing a tennis-specific factory set to be completed next year.
04:31For full coverage, check out Justin Birnbaum's piece on Forbes.com.
04:37This is Kieran Meadows from Forbes. Thanks for tuning in.
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