Rockit launches partnership with skateboarding sensation

Rockit Apple out to take a bigger bite out of the US market thanks to a new partnership with skateboarding sensation, 14-year-old Olympic medallist Sky Brown.

The partnership will see the high-profile athlete share on her Instagram and TikTok channels why she loves Rockit’s small, but perfectly-formed apples. Her first post is already live on Instagram(link is external) and TikTok.(link is external)

“When I’m out all day skating and surfing, I need a snack that keeps me going. Rockit apples are my go-to as they’re the perfect healthy and miniature snack. Rockit apples are all about feeling good, being brave and staying strong, and so am I. I can’t wait to do more with Rockit this year,” she says.

“Sky has high energy and a zest for life, which is an attitude she definitely shares with Rockit, making her an ideal partner. Like us, Sky is power-packed with energy, fun and enthusiasm. We can’t wait to Ready. Set. Rockit into 2023 together,” says GM Global Marketing, Julian Smith. “With her 2.1 million followers on TikTok and another 1.3 million on Instagram, Sky has enormous reach and is hugely admired and keenly followed by millions around the world. She’s broken the mould, not to mention a whole lot of records in her field, just as we have done in our world by creating the first healthy, sweet snack-sized apple.”

Smith says the association will give Rockit access to a different audience. “Our brand awareness has grown significantly in the US and Sky will allow us to reach a whole bunch of new consumers who will get to taste and enjoy our unique Rockit apple. There’s no doubt Sky is an inspiration and is making history by showing young people, particularly girls, they can reach their dreams and become unstoppable.”

The new global partnership will see Sky posting about Rockit on her social channels during 2023, with the option to extend the agreement after that. Sky started skateboarding at the age of two, and when she was 10, became the youngest professional skateboarder in the world. In July 2021, she won the X Games women’s skateboarding park gold medal and then went and did it again this year. And, in December 2021, she was named the BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year and is up for the same award for 2022, with the winner to be announced next week.

Born in Miyazaki, Japan, to a Japanese mother and British father, Sky spends about half the year in California. Acknowledged as one of the most talented skateboarders in the history of the sport, she is also a top-notch surfer, with 360s on open wave faces one of her signature moves.

Sky represented Great Britain at the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics, winning bronze in the park skateboarding event, making her the country’s youngest-ever medallist. She is also the youngest athlete to be endorsed by brands including Nike, GoPro, and Samsung, putting Rockit in very good company.

Just like their new partner, Rockit Global Ltd is also having a trophy-filled year, winning the Supreme title at the 2022 New Zealand International Business Awards, as well as the Best Large Business.

With headquarters in Hawke’s Bay, New Zealand, the company’s perfectly-formed miniature apples are now grown in New Zealand, Australia, the United States and Europe and sold in more than 30 countries around the world. It aims to be the world’s most-loved apple brand and has plans to quadruple its growth within four years, particularly in the huge US market where it partners with Chelan Fresh growers and distributors, who are based in Washington State.