Sprouts Empowers Female Athletes Through NIL Partnerships

Healthy market teams up with nine female athletes and local charities to support nutrition

Sprouts Farmers Market has teamed up with nine female student-athletes in a NIL campaign initiated over the Summer and extending through the end of 2023. 

As part of this partnership, the Sprouts Healthy Communities Foundation made a $1,000 donation on behalf of each student-athlete to a local charity supporting school gardening and nutrition education programs. Most of the donations have already been made in the athletes' names. The participating student-athletes include:

• Madisen Skinner, University of Texas, Volleyball
• Savannah Price, Texas A&M University, Softball
• Jazzy Owens-Barnett, Rice University, Basketball
• Amber Mallas, California State University, Fullerton, Soccer
• Reilyn Turner, University of California, Los Angeles, Soccer
• Sarah Burwell, Georgia Tech University, Cross Country
• Hannah McLaughlin, Vanderbilt University, Soccer
• Alex Jean Glover, Southern Methodist University, Volleyball
• Kendall Whitman, George Washington University, Gymnastics

Participating Charities:

• Captain Planet Foundation
• Out Teach
• UT Austin School Garden Program
• Garden School Foundation
• Urban Harvest
• Plant the Seed
• Blue Watermelon Project
• City Blossoms

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by madi (@madisenskinner)

In addition to donations, the student-athletes receive direct compensation in exchange for NIL rights and multiple social media posts throughout the semester.

Sprouts is committed to supporting female student-athletes through NIL partnerships in alignment with the company's values. According to its website, Sprouts is on a mission to empower women "on and off the field whether it's through healthy groceries or partnerships with the powerhouse athletes and organizations changing the game in women's sports."

"Through these NIL partnerships, these talented and hard-working collegiate female athletes are inspirations to building a healthier, stronger future for women," said Alisa Gmelich, Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of Sprouts. "Their dedication aligns with Sprouts' commitment to power women on and off the field, paving the way for female athletes for years to come."

NIL platform Icon Source facilitated the partnerships in conjunction with Bespoke Sports & Entertainment. 

Mick Hamilton, Vice President of Operations at Icon Source, praised the partnership and acknowledged Sprouts' early leadership in the NIL market: 

"Sprouts has been one of, if not the best, brands in the NIL space to date. They've been extremely creative in making their campaigns different and unique in comparison to others while putting a mission behind it and empowering female athletes at the same time. I'm sure we will be seeing other brands follow suit!"

Sprouts plans to continue collaborating with student-athletes in 2024.