Naomi Osaka debuts luxury leather goods brand at Hamptons summit
Naomi Osaka debuts luxury leather goods at Uncharted's Fame to Fortune Summit in the Hamptons on Friday, unveiling a prototype handbag alongside business partner Mike Cherman and pitching investors on what she calls her biggest dream outside tennis. The four-time Grand Slam champion framed the brand as her next chapter after years of pairing Nike court looks with pieces from designers including Hana Yagi and Robert Wun.
Key Takeaways
- Osaka unveiled a prototype luxury handbag at Uncharted's Fame to Fortune Summit in Southampton, New York.
- She partnered with Chinatown Market founder Mike Cherman on the leather goods venture.
- The daylong Hamptons conference connects celebrities exploring business ideas with potential investors.
- Osaka pitched the brand between U.S. Open practice rounds, calling it her biggest non-tennis dream.
- Variety served as one of five media partners at the summit alongside Yahoo, Fortune, the NYSE and Culture.
What Did Naomi Osaka Launch at the Hamptons Summit?
Osaka unveiled a brand of luxury leather goods at the Fame to Fortune Summit, a daylong conference organized by affluent community-building organization Uncharted. During her keynote panel, she showcased a prototype of one of her handbag creations.
The tennis champion has long treated the court as a runway, pairing Nike outfits with pieces from collaborators including designers Hana Yagi and Robert Wun. Her next staple piece, she told the crowd, is one she designed herself.
Why Does a Luxury Brand Matter for Osaka's Career?
Osaka told Fortune executive editorial director Diane Brady that success on the court opened doors to invest and connect with strong partners—experience that brought her to the point of wanting to build something entirely her own.
"Being a really good tennis player has given me a lot of amazing opportunities to invest and also just to surround myself with some really great people and I feel like that's gotten me to this point where I want to create my own thing," she said during the chat, which also served as a pitch to potential investors in the audience.
"It's something that I want to pour all my energy into because I believe in it too with all my heart," she added. For fans tracking celebrity business moves across Streaming & TV Alerts, the Hamptons debut signals Osaka's most ambitious step yet from fashion collaborator to founder.
What Is Uncharted's Fame to Fortune Summit?
Uncharted co-founders Michael Loeb and Justin Barth organized the summit to connect celebrities exploring potential business ventures with investors eager to fund them. The event was held at Loeb's sprawling shoreside estate in Southampton, New York.
Osaka's conversation was one of several keynote panels during the confab. Programming drew finance professionals, media figures and entertainment names mingling around the estate's pool and dining tent, with food stations, coffee from Kenyan brand Kahawa and Cadillac test drives among the amenities.
Loeb told attendees he did not expect anyone to leave with a billion-dollar business that day, but hoped guests would gain ideas and the connections to pursue them. Full coverage of the launch appeared in Variety.
How Did the Event Fit Around the U.S. Open?
Osaka's Hamptons appearance came between practice rounds at this year's U.S. Open, underscoring how she is balancing competitive tennis with entrepreneurial ambitions. The summit's timing placed her brand debut on a high-profile weekend in the New York sports and business calendar.
Weather also played a role: staff set up plastic coverings around the dining tent during Osaka's conversation as rain from a looming storm approached. Despite the conditions, the panel proceeded as a centerpiece of the morning programming.