Wide Receiver · NFL · New England Patriots
DeMario "Pop" Douglas
Douglas was catching touchdowns and receptions. And building a brand that had nothing to do with the depth chart.
← All Athletes
Douglas was catching touchdowns and receptions. And building a brand that had nothing to do with the depth chart.
← All Athletes
DeMario Douglas, who goes by “Pop” for reasons anyone who has met him immediately understands, had something that doesn’t show up on a combine report: a nickname that was already a brand waiting to happen, and a personality that made every room he walked into fifteen degrees warmer. Pick 210 out of Liberty University. Now a building brand in New England.
Not the footballer: the franchise. “Pop” wasn't just a nickname; it was an identity that could anchor products, partnerships, and community initiatives that would outlast any given season on the depth chart. By the time Douglas was catching touchdowns and receptions for the New England Patriots, the commercial infrastructure Brunswick had built around him was already running in parallel.
The signature move was the Avery’s Soda partnership. Pop Douglas Strawberry Cream Soda: a nickname that was literally begging to be put on a label, paired with a soda company whose own roots run deep in New England. The drink sold nationally. Proceeds went to Connecticut schools. The story was covered by Sports Illustrated, the Boston Globe, and over 25 publications — and when they needed a name for who had architected the partnership, they named Julian Aiken and Dante Patterson from Brunswick directly. That doesn’t happen by accident. That’s what it looks like when a management firm controls the narrative.
“What I love about Brunswick is they treat me like family, not like a client. They stay on top of everything, meetings, deadlines, opportunities, so I can focus on ball while my brand keeps growing.”
The deals kept coming. Pop was named Guest of Honor at the Brazil vs. France World Cup Friendly at Gillette Stadium. He appeared on the Gronk & Edelman “Dudes on Dudes” podcast, a platform that reaches millions of NFL fans who still hold Patriots legends close. He threw out the first pitch at Fenway Park. He presented the Michelob Ultra Player of the Match Trophy at the Morocco vs. Scotland World Cup game at Gillette Stadium. He collaborated with Concepts x Nike x Patriots on a limited-edition varsity jacket that sold out and generated its own press cycle. Each activation built on the last, each piece of coverage raised the baseline for the next ask.
Then came the Turkey Drive. Working alongside fellow Brunswick client Anfernee Jennings, Pop coordinated the donation of 1,500 turkeys to Massachusetts Boys & Girls Clubs across the state. Six communities. Real logistics. Real impact. Sports Illustrated covered it again: and named Brunswick again. Local and national news stations ran the story: Boston Globe, NBC, Channel 7, CBS, and several others. Two features in the same season, in the same publication, with the firm’s name attached to both. That is a track record, not a coincidence.
The more important number is what the brand is worth now, and what it will be worth when Pop is done playing. Brunswick built the infrastructure so that when the day comes, there’s a business to run, not just highlights to look back on.
"We architected the Avery's partnership, placed both Sports Illustrated stories naming Brunswick directly, and built the digital infrastructure around Pop's growing platform across Instagram and TikTok."
