‘Being relentless’: Olajuwon Ajanaku of Eastside Golf details how a chance meeting with Michael Jordan led to an once-in-a-lifetime deal
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Founded by two Morehouse College grads, the brand has flipped golf fashion on its head by making it more inclusive and tied to the idea of what one would wear off the course, on the course.
The blend between golf and Black America has been understood for decades. Well beyond Tiger Woods, there was Lee Elder and before him, Charlie Sifford, the first Black man to play on the PGA Tour. Over time, as more and more Black people gravitate toward the game, Eastside Golf has been the middle point between modern golf fashion and classic style on the links.
One of the apparel company’s biggest collaborations? The one with Jordan Brand, the iconic sneaker and apparel line made famous by Hall of Famer Michael Jordan.
During a sit-down interview at Invest Fest in Atlanta, Olajuwon Ajanaku, one of the founders of Eastside Golf with Earl Cooper, explained how the brand managed to partner with Nike before landing a deal with His Airness.
“Chris Paul,” Ajanaku said when asked who was the biggest reason the Nike deal took place. “Playing golf with him, he’s one of my investors as well into Eastside Golf, but he saw where we’re designing … that we take this game very serious. He wanted us to stick with Nike.”
“There were other brands that were knocking on the door that wanted to work with us. Me and Earl … met Gentry Humphrey at Jordan Brand And from Gentry Humphrey we got a chance to pitch to Michael Jordan.”
While getting in a room with MJ to pitch a golf fashion line might have been one thing, getting his seal of approval was another. According to Ajanaku, the Jordan in the board room is as similar as the one who won six titles with the Chicago Bulls and redefined flash, winning and tenacity on the court.
“It was tough,” Ajanaku said. “He’s not easy. He’s trying to break down what you do. What does that look like? He’s trying to ask you certain questions. At the end of it, he was like, ‘You two guys have amazing stories. We at Jordan Brand tell the best stories.’ It was just basically being authentic and continuously being relentless on getting the game of golf out there differently.”
The ethos of Eastside Golf boils down to confidence and belief. When Cooper and Ajanaku first visited a course together, the two believed everybody belonged, a staunch and ready dismissal of the old ways of thinking that golf was a game that belonged solely to the elite.
For Cooper and Ajanaku, two Morehouse College grads who found a different path for one of their favorite hobbies, reshaping how golf fashion looks might have a greater impact than one particular swing or putt. Sometimes, it is just grabbing a pair of clubs, wearing a pair of Jordans with a gold chain, a bucket hat or a fitted and having a ball.