Whoop Restructures Its Marketing: Nike Veteran Takes Over the $10 Billion Brand

In July, the company announced that its membership had surpassed 3 million people worldwide.

Competition Intensifies

The wearables market reached $103.1 billion in 2026 and, according to a Grand View Research forecast, will grow to $229.9 billion by 2033. Apple holds about 18% of the market as of the first quarter, according to IDC. Smart ring maker Oura, TechCrunch reported, is preparing for an IPO in September with a potential valuation of up to $16 billion.

60% of Whoop's business comes from markets outside North America; the company operates in 56 countries. Expanding international marketing is one of van Hameren's priorities.

Sports Partnerships

Partnerships with sports organizations remain the core of the strategy. Last September, Whoop became the official health and fitness tracker of the Ryder Cup golf tournament: as part of the deal, a “Whoop Live” activation aired on NBC, letting viewers track players' heart rates. Earlier, the company signed multi-year agreements with the PGA Tour and Premier Padel.

Under van Hameren's leadership, the brand plans activations around the Berlin Marathon in September and the Dubai Fitness Challenge — a 30-day fitness movement kicking off in October.

“We're expanding our presence and meeting consumers where they live their lives and fill them with meaning through sport,” the executive said.

Owned Media and Paid Reach

The weekly Whoop Podcast, running since 2018, has become a key owned media channel: guests have included Sabalenka and Quest Diagnostics CEO Jim Davis. In recent months, the podcast has devoted episodes to topics relevant to women — fertility and reproductive health.

“Owned media is powerful when it doesn't feel like a brand talking at people head-on. It has to earn attention with its content,” van Hameren explained.

In parallel, the brand is ramping up paid placements. Since the beginning of the year, Whoop has spent about $2 million on national linear TV advertising, according to iSpot. The largest share of spending went to Golf Channel — 15.2%, followed by ABC — 12.5%. By programming, the PGA Tour leads (20.9% of the budget), followed by X Games Aspen on ESPN and ABC (18.2%). A year earlier, according to iSpot, the brand spent only $488,000 on linear TV for all of 2025. Activations on CTV and social media are also in the plans.

The company is preparing the next big marketing push for Black Friday and Cyber Monday. “We also traditionally see strong momentum at the start of the new year, when people are thinking about their health and wellness goals, so the holiday season and the New Year's resolution period are a natural opportunity to introduce more people to Whoop,” van Hameren concluded.