Authentic Brands Group (Authentic) has partnered with New York-based C-Life Group to design, manufacture, and distribute apparel for the iconic racquet sports brand, Prince. Announced in mid-March 2026, this strategic alliance aims to elevate Prince from a traditional equipment manufacturer into a comprehensive lifestyle and performance apparel label.

The multi-year partnership covers a broad spectrum of categories, including on-court activewear, off-court sportswear, outerwear, and swimwear for men, women, and children across the United States and Canada. By leveraging C-Life Group’s vertically integrated sourcing model and extensive retail relationships, Authentic intends to capitalize on the ‘tenniscore’ aesthetic, which has seen a 24 per cent growth in demand for fashion-forward court silhouettes over the past year.

Strategic capitalization on the racquet sports resurgence

The reintroduction of Prince apparel is timed to intersect with the escalating global participation in tennis, padel, and pickleball, which now encompasses over 106 million players worldwide. The first collections are slated for a Summer 2026 launch, targeting key retail channels that bridge the gap between specialty sports shops and premium department stores.

Industry data projects, the Americas tennis apparel market will grow at a CAGR of 4.2 per cent through 2030, presenting a high-margin opportunity for Authentic’s asset-light business model. As racquet sports gain significant cultural and commercial momentum, we see a profound opportunity to scale Prince beyond the equipment bag, states Christina Martin Pieper, Executive Vice President, Authentic Brands Group. The initiative focuses on technical fabrics featuring UV protection and moisture management while maintaining a design language rooted in Prince's 50-year heritage of performance.

Prince is a premier racquet sports brand specializing in high-performance equipment and technical apparel. Operating as a core entity within the Authentic Brands Group portfolio, it targets global tennis, squash, and pickleball enthusiasts. The brand is currently executing an apparel-first growth strategy to leverage its legacy of racquet innovation for wider lifestyle retail dominance.