OH CANADA: OverActive Media and the esports lifestyle brand H4X have joined forces in a multiyear partnership.
H4X, which is pronounced “Hacks,” is becoming the lead apparel partner of the Toronto Ultra and Toronto Defiant, with both franchises having unveiled spring collections. The union brings together two Canadian companies.
For the newly crowned Call of Duty defending champions Toronto Ultra, there is its original T-shirt. That style is a replica of the first T-shirt that was produced by the team that previously had not been offered to the public. Other options include a “Strength in the North” hoodie and a signature hat.
The Toronto Defiant is playing up its #RiseTogether and #DefiantForever hashtags by integrating both of them into the assortment. Hoodies, T-shirts and masks are some of the styles in the mix.
H4X chief executive officer Cole Gurman said, “As a product driven company that aims to be the best in class, we know that both cyber athletes and fans alike will be excited about the meticulous attention to detail that runs deep in our DNA.”
On another front, H4X has introduced an exclusive MFAM Blackout 2.0 collection with multi FPS champion Nick Kolcheff, who is also known as “Nickmercs.”
Stay-at-home mandates have been welcome news for millions of gamers. Currently valued around $1.08 billion, the global esports market is expected to increase to nearly $1.62 billion in 2021.
As a sign of how the sector is growing, Generation Esports has reportedly raised $10.8 billion to strengthen student esports leagues and tournaments. Separately, Oklahoma State University is striving to be a Big 12 leader in esports. As a way to woo students, the school has unveiled a gaming arena. Gamers of OSU is reportedly a group with 500 active members. Two years after being launched, Apex Legends has reached 100 million unique players globally.
The pandemic prompted several fashion brands to delve into gaming with their own spin. Balenciaga unveiled its fall 2021 collection as a video game and Gucci and The North Face kicked off 2021 with a collaboration collection for Pokémon Go earlier this year.
By: rosemaryfeitelberg
