Sophie Cunningham Signs Brand Partnership with Once Upon A Coconut

Once Upon A Coconut has signed Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham as a brand partner, adding a prominent WNBA presence to its growing roster of marketing collaborators. The agreement covers advertising, retail promotions, digital campaigns, content creation and personal appearances, with national marketing activity planned across channels.

The partnership's launch drew notable early traction, with the announcement surpassing 119,000 likes, per the company. Cunningham has cited chocolate and pineapple as among her preferred flavors from the brand's lineup, which includes those varieties alongside blueberry, watermelon and a recently introduced fruit punch blend. Founded by John Chiorando, the brand sources its coconut water from Ben Tre, Vietnam, and sells 12-packs at $24.99 through its direct-to-consumer channel and retailers including 7-Eleven, where it secured distribution in 2023.

Once Upon A Coconut has been deliberate in building its advisory and investor bench alongside its marketing profile. Daymond John, the "Shark Tank" star, joined the brand as an equity partner in March 2024, and wellness personality Ben Greenfield joined its Health and Wellness Board the following month. The Cunningham partnership continues that pattern of attaching recognizable names to the brand ahead of broader retail expansion.

Why it matters

Athlete partnerships in the beverage category have shifted from simple endorsements to genuine retail-activation tools, and the WNBA's rising commercial profile has made its players increasingly attractive to challenger brands looking for cost-efficient reach. For a brand like Once Upon A Coconut, a deal that spans in-store promotions alongside digital and content activations does double work: it provides fuel for conversations with retail buyers while generating organic demand at shelf. The breadth of the Cunningham agreement, rather than a single social post or one-off appearance, suggests the brand is treating the relationship as a structured growth lever rather than a visibility add-on.

What to watch

The clearest measure of this deal's commercial value will be whether it translates into new retail door placements or improved sell-through velocity at existing accounts. The announcement does not disclose specific distribution commitments tied to Cunningham's involvement, leaving open the question of how directly the partnership connects to expanded national grocery or convenience presence beyond 7-Eleven. Whether the WNBA audience's documented purchasing power moves product off shelves will determine if athlete-led retail activations become a repeatable playbook for the brand.

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Sources

• Once Upon A Coconut | Premium Natural Coconut Water
• Our Story - Once Upon A Coconut
• News - Once Upon A Coconut