Ishveen Jolly, CEO and Co-Founder of OpenSponsorship: Over $5 Million Raised to Build the Future of Sports Influencer Marketing

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Ishveen Jolly, CEO and Co-Founder of OpenSponsorship, a sports influencer marketing platform that's raised over $5 Million in funding, about why sponsorship is all about experiences that it feels like money can’t buy, and how this billion-dollar industry looks set to keep growing well into the future. By giving their clients access to a whole range of sponsorship options across events of all shapes and sizes, OpenSponsorship is positioning themselves as ‘the Airbnb of sports sponsorship.’ We also speak about Ishveen’s passion for sponsorship, and how she found her way into the industry despite not everyone around her always being on side, how sponsorship provides an ideal opportunity for athletes to earn independent income, and why ease of access and a streamlined service is putting OpenSponsorship well ahead of the competition. Topics Discussed: Ishveen’s background in school sports, and how this passion for athleticism eventually grew into a business idea Working as a sports agent, and insights behind the scenes of this little-known industry Why industry contacts are as vital as knowledge and expertise when it comes to cutting contract deals in sports How a court ruling regarding athlete’s brand independence paved the way for OpenSponsorship’s industry rise Ishveen’s vision for OpenSponsorship to become ‘the Airbnb of sports sponsorship,’ and what it means for the future of the industry Favorite book: The Hard Thing About Hard Things