When tennis player Coco Gauff, who has an ongoing deal with New Balance, needed inspiration for her new shoe’s colorway, she knew exactly who to call: her creative little brother Cameron, aged nine.
In a recent interview with People magazine, Gauff praised Cameron for the colorway he designed that has now been made into a shoe, the Coco CG1 Kids, available now. The shoe came about when a product designer at New Balance gave the tennis champion’s little brother a “how to make a sneaker” book; within a few weeks, Cameron sent the company drawings and colors.
Coco Gauff of the USA serves against Madison Keys of the USA during her women’s singles quarter-final match on day five of the Dubai Duty-Free Tennis at Dubai Duty-Free Tennis Stadium on Feb. 23, 2023, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Christopher Pike/Getty Images)
Gauff told People his vibrant design ideas, which include a Nickelodeon-esque colorway of blue, orange, and green, fit “perfectly” with her approach on the court. She also said her brother came up with the designs intuitively.
“I asked him about that, and he said [the design]was, ‘Just what I was feeling,’ ” she said, adding, “I think that’s just what’s fun about being a kid in general. As you get older, you tend to overthink things. I feel like kids really trust their first instinct, and that’s kind of what he did. He just said he just thought the colors look cool together.”
Gauff added that her little brother was beyond excited — and she suspects he brags to his friends and classmates.
“He wears the shoes all the time,” she said.
The collaboration has also nurtured a budding talent in her little brother. Gauff said Cameron loves to draw and asks for art-related gifts every Christmas. One of his drawings also hangs on the door to her room. She also joked that since Cameron is the youngest, he has a reputation for being the family favorite.
“We always poke fun that Cameron is the favorite because he’s the youngest, but no, he just goes on his own path. He’s a true youngest sibling,” Gauff said.
Gauff, who currently holds the No. 6 ranking for singles and No. 3 for doubles in women’s tennis, signed her first deal with New Balance at the age of 14, eventually signing a long-term extension with the brand in October 2022, Forbes magazine reported. Her first shoe under the new contract, “All in the Family,” was released in October 2022, ahead of the WTA finals.
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