Ben Shelton, The Brand: His Story To Tell

Ben Shelton doesn’t think of himself as traditional, at least in the tennis sense of the word.

The 20-year-old American tennis star has navigated a singular path to the ATP’s Top-20—he’s ranked 19th after a run to the U.S. Open semifinals in New York this month—and it comes with the responsibility of thinking about more than just playing tennis. Now he understands what it means to live on a world stage.

And how that translates to Ben Shelton, the brand.

“Yeah, it is definitely something interesting to think about,” he tells me with his signature smile while soaking in the Vancouver, B.C., sunshine. “It is something I haven’t had to worry about most of my life and not something I thought would come as quickly as it has. As a professional athlete, it is a unique opportunity to impact people around you and I think a big part of that is the way you show your personality on the court and off the court.”

Therein lies the focus of Shelton, offering up himself for fans while trying to represent himself—and his brand—in the most natural way possible.

Defining himself comes first. “My on-court brand is someone who is a fierce competitor, somewhat of a mamba mentality on the court,” he says. “I try to be a killer out there and compete at the highest levels. I also enjoy having fun on the court and smiling. That helps bring out my competitive spirit but doesn’t get in the way or hinder it.”

Off the court may look a little different. “That mamba killer mentality isn’t me all the time,” he says while relaxing in an On crewneck sweatshirt. “Off the court it looks like somebody who is humble and more of a gentleman. I think I am more easy-going off the court.”

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For a young player making a deep run at his home major, both sides of Shelton got plenty of attention, both in the mainstream media with primetime televised matches and on social media. From Shelton’s now-famous phone celebration—and Novak Djokovic’s subsequent usage—to his, well, excitable college-style exuberance on the court, he quickly learned how fans form opinions.“Whenever people don’t know you well and want to comment on one thing they see on the internet or TV, it is easy to pick a side or say something negative,” he says about some of the reactions. “I think that it is interesting in sports, people love to see that hero-slash-villain aspect and in no way am I thinking about trying to be a hero of a villain, I am just trying to compete hard and do what I can to win.”