Sports Illustrated has new partners for its women’s swimwear line.
The magazine has tapped Swim USA to design and produce an 83-piece collection of swim tops, bottoms, one-pieces and coverups that will be sold exclusively on the Sports Illustrated storefront on Amazon.
The launch of the line coincides with the release of the 60th anniversary edition of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit magazine that drop Tuesday. One of the rookie models featured in the issue was Chanel Iman, a mother of three, who was photographed in the X-Back Underwire Bikini Top and the High Leg High Waisted Bottom from the new Sports Illustrated swimwear collection.
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The collection, which will feature bright tropicals and bold graphics, will be priced from $30 to $60 and offered in sizes XS to XXL.
“Throughout its 60-year history, the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit franchise has celebrated the beauty of women from all walks of life, inspiring confidence, and redefining beauty norms. This new swimwear collection is a natural extension of what we’ve seen on the pages for decades, and we’re excited to offer our vibrant community and new fans alike, another way to engage with the brand,” said Christina Shanahan, senior vice president of entertainment marketing at Authentic Brands Group, which purchased the intellectual property for Sports Illustrated brand for $110 million in 2019.
In 2020, Authentic had licensed Venus Fashion, a women’s swim and apparel manufacturer, to produce Sports Illustrated swimwear, but it was discontinued during the pandemic and Authentic switched partners to Swim USA.
Authentic has had some challenges of late with the Sports Illustrated brand. In January, the brand owner terminated its license with Arena Group, the digital media company that it had contracted with to run the magazine, following its purchase. Arena had missed a $3.75 million payment to Authentic, and when it was informed it was in breach of its contract, it threatened to end the print edition and fire most of the staff.
But the next month, Authentic signed a 10-year license with an option to extend to 30 years, with Minute Media, a digital media firm that specializes in sports. Under this new licensing deal, both Sports Illustrated’s print editions, as well as the Swimsuit issue, were retained along with its staff.