Bulls Sign Jersey Patch Sponsorship Right Before Start Of 2018-19 Season

When the Chicago Bulls take the floor for the team’s first game of the 2018-19 regular season, players will be wearing a different kind of jersey. The jersey will include a brand new patch featuring Zenni Optical, which is now the Official Eyewear Partner of the Bulls.

While all NBA jersey patch deals are currently in a trial run of three-years (per league rules), the Bulls’ overall partnership with Zenni Optical runs for a total of five years, and includes various marketing elements, digital assets and in-arena signage.

The Bulls are one of the last NBA teams to strike a deal involving a jersey patch sponsorship. The organization claims that it was due to it being “methodical” and “intentional” in its search for a jersey patch partner.

“In our search, we put a high priority on partnering with a company that shares many of the Bulls’ values,” says Bulls President and COO Michael Reinsdorf. “Once we started our conversations with Zenni’s co-founder Julia Zhen and everyone at the company, it was quickly evident to us that they also place great importance on community and family, and for those reasons and many more we are excited to officially welcome Zenni into our Bulls family.”

Separately, Zenni Optical has endorsement deals in place with NBA players Zach LaVine, Lauri Markkanen and Robin Lopez. The online eyewear business claims to command 50% of the total online eyewear market.

With the Bulls’ deal, the only NBA teams yet to sign a jersey patch sponsorship are the Washington Wizards, Houston Rockets, Indiana Pacers and Oklahoma City Thunder. The Phoenix Suns were the last NBA team to sign such a deal when it announced a new relationship with PayPal in early October.