25-year old tennis champion Maria Sharapova unveiled her very own brand of candy – Sugarpova.

“I wanted to own something – something 100% me. Where I make all the final decisions; here I’m involved from start to finish; where I was bringing in my own people I want to work with and investing my own money. I wanted fun and young and nothing too serious. That’s how it came about with candy.” wrote pravda.ru.

Even though the name of the brand is slightly banal with its fatuous word play (which could have, in my opinion, been much better), the brand suits the tennis player and her sweetheart-like image quite well.

“Sugarpova brings a new level of sophistication and quality to the gummy candy market, without losing sight of the playful nature of the product. The brand needed to communicate this balance by being fashionable, fresh and fun, just like Maria. We designed a unique lip shape that can be altered to convey the many attitudes of the brand – chic, cheeky, silly, sassy, flirty, quirky, spooky, and smitten – corresponding with different shapes and flavors of the gummies themselves.” wrote Red Antler, agency behind Sugarpova’s design.

The candy brand has 12 flavors now and Sharapova would like to expand them further. Each flavor is in a different shape and has a different cute name that resembles it.

Photos: Red Antler 

I guess the design agency really has incorporated everything that they aimed too in Sugarpova’s design. It’s not too cute, but not too strict either, resembling the minimalism and cleanliness of northern design styles.

All in all, I think Maria Sharapova’s brand will do quite well. It has everything it needs – beautiful design, a somewhat innovative approach to the product and a celebrity behind it. If anything, who could resist a tennis ball or high heel shoe shaped candy?

Check out the commentary about Sugarpova by the creators of the brand and Maria herself, below: