How I Built a Talent Management Agency Working With Nike, Gymshark, Celsius & Gatorade — Starting With $0
@imalexgunnar · OVO Talent
The Complete System
"Most people skip this. That's why most people fail."
Choose ONE creator category:
· Fitness / Health
· Beauty / Fashion
· Gaming / Tech
· Food / Lifestyle
· Finance / Business
I started with fitness because Colby was my first creator. Passion = you outwork generalists.
Before I had a single client, I had all of this ready:
☐ Instagram bio → "Talent Manager"
☐ LinkedIn → "Founder, OVO Talent"
☐ Portfolio deck (even with 0 clients)
☐ Professional email domain
☐ Media kit template (Canva)
☐ Contract template (lawyer-reviewed)
People Google you before they respond to your DM.
STANDARD: 20% of deal value
SLIDING: 20% under $5K → 15% over $10K
RETAINER: $500-2K/mo per creator
Real math:
One deal = $5,000 → your 20% = $1,000
Time: 2 emails + 1 call
The Gymshark deal for Colby?
Yearly six figures. 20% recurring.
"I will find and close brand deals for your content, taking 20% of each deal. Zero upfront cost. You make content, I make you money."
That's what I said to Colby. He said yes. The Gymshark deal followed.
$0 to start. No product. No inventory. No ad spend. Just relationships and emails.
"200 million creators. About 10,000 managers. That's a 20,000:1 ratio. The opportunity is insane."
NANO (1K-10K) — Easy to sign, small deals. Good for practice.
MICRO (10K-100K) ★ START HERE
Sweet spot for new managers. They NEED you. $500-5K per deal. Most are unmanaged.
MID (100K-500K) — Real money. $5K-25K per deal.
MACRO (500K+) — Premium. Need a track record.
Colby had ~50K followers when we started.
For every creator prospect, I check 6 things:
1. Engagement rate — 3%+ good, 5%+ great
2. Content consistency — Posting 3+ times/week?
3. Brand fit — Would Nike want this creator?
4. Growth trajectory — Gaining followers or flat?
5. Current management — Check bio for "mgmt" email. If managed → move on.
6. Red flags — Bought followers? Controversial? Inactive?
20 minutes per creator. Do 3 per day = 50 prospects in 2 weeks.
1. PERSONALIZED HOOK
"Hey [name], your [specific video] was crazy — the [detail] had me hooked."
2. CREDIBILITY DROP
"I run OVO Talent — we work with brands like Gymshark and Celsius."
3. VALUE-FIRST OFFER
"I have 3 brand contacts in [niche] looking for creators right now."
4. SOFT CLOSE
"Open to a 15-min chat this week? Zero pressure."
8 DM script variations in the program
50 creators researched → 30 DMs sent → 15 replies (50%) → 5 calls booked (33%) → 3 signed (60%)
3 creators on your roster. 30 days. From scratch. Zero experience.
Repeat this every month. In 90 days you have 8-10 creators. That's not a side hustle — that's an agency.
"Don't sell management. Sell a deal. The management follows naturally."
RAPPORT (5 min)
"What got you into creating?" "What's your dream brand deal?" Just listen.
DIAGNOSE (10 min)
"What's the biggest thing holding you back from brand deals?"
They tell you the exact problem you're about to solve.
PRESCRIBE (5 min)
"Here's what I'd do in the first 30 days..."
CLOSE (2 min)
"Want me to start reaching out to brands this week?"
No hard sell. They should be asking YOU.
Instead of saying:
"I'd love to manage your brand deals"
Say:
"I have a contact at Nike looking for fitness creators. Can I pitch you to them?"
You're not asking to be hired.
You're offering them money.
The Gymshark deal happened because I didn't pitch Colby on "management." I pitched him on a specific deal. Then another. Then another. Then he never left.
Lead with value. Always.
DAY 1: Welcome call. Get all social logins + analytics. Set expectations.
DAY 2-3: Full content audit. Review their top 10 posts. Identify their unique value.
DAY 4-5: Build their media kit. Stats, demographics, content examples, rate card.
DAY 6-7: Identify 10 target brands. Submit first 3 pitches.
By day 7 they think: "This person works harder for me than anyone I've ever hired."
That feeling = retention forever.
Sunset clause = earn commission for 3-6 months after a creator exits. I lost $120K learning this lesson when an international client refused to pay. Settled through courts. Now every contract is lawyer-reviewed.
Commission 15-20% · Payment within 14 days · 6-12 month term · 30-day termination · Category exclusivity
Full lawyer-reviewed agreement template in the program
"Three lines. One email. $40,000 Gymshark deal."
Typical brand: $1M/year marketing budget
· 40% — Paid Ads (Meta, Google)
· 25% — Influencer Marketing ← YOU
· 20% — Events & PR
· 15% — Content Production
$250K ÷ 12 = ~$20K/month available for your creators
Who controls this budget?
→ Marketing Manager
→ Brand Partnerships Manager
→ Find them on LinkedIn
They HAVE the money. They're actively looking to spend it.
Subject: [Creator Name] + one metric
Body: One sentence about audience overlap
Close: Link to media kit
Three lines. $40,000.
Expanded version (5 lines):
1. Compliment their recent campaign
2. "I manage [Creator] who reaches..."
3. ONE specific collab idea
4. Social proof (past brands)
5. "Can I send a quick deck?"
40%+ open rate.
12 email templates + the actual Gymshark email
Followers × Engagement × Niche Multiplier
Example:
100K × 4% × 1.5x (fitness) = $6,000 per post
Niche Multipliers:
Finance / B2B: 2.0x
Tech / SaaS: 1.8x
Fitness / Health: 1.5x
Beauty / Fashion: 1.2x
Comedy: 0.8x
Deal Types:
One-off: 1x rate
3-post package: 2.5x
Monthly retainer: 3x
Brand ambassador: 10-15x
Rate card calculator in the program
Rate · Usage rights · Exclusivity · Deliverables · Revisions · Timeline · Content ownership · Whitelisting · Approval process · Payment terms · Kill fee · Performance bonuses · Cross-platform rights · Affiliate commission
Brand says "too expensive"? Don't lower the rate. Remove usage rights. Shorten exclusivity. Reduce deliverables.
The price stays the same. The scope changes.
The Celsius campaign: 7 of these variables were negotiated. 42 million views later — everyone was happy.
"85% of revenue comes from repeat brands. The first deal is the hardest. Every deal after is a conversation."
DAY 1-3: Brief received → review with creator
DAY 4-7: Content ideation + concept approval
DAY 8-14: Creator films content
DAY 15-17: Brand review + revisions
DAY 18-20: Final approval + scheduling
DAY 21: CONTENT GOES LIVE 🚀
DAY 28: Performance report to brand
DAY 35: Invoice sent
DAY 65: Payment received (Net 30)
65 days from brief to payment. This is why you need multiple deals running simultaneously.
After EVERY campaign, document:
· Brand name + campaign brief
· Content screenshots
· Performance metrics (views, engagement, clicks)
· Creator testimonial quote
· Brand testimonial quote
The Celsius case study: 42 million views.
That one number opened 10+ brand doors.
After 3 case studies, deals come to YOU.
That's the inflection point.
After every campaign delivery:
1. Send performance report (within 7 days)
2. Compare to industry benchmarks
3. Propose next campaign idea BEFORE they ask
4. Offer 3-month package at 10% discount
Brands don't want to find new creators. They want to keep working with ones that delivered.
Be easy to re-hire.
One brand relationship = $20-50K+ over a year.
"This is multiplication, not motivation."
MONTH 3-4 (Starter):
3 creators × 1 deal × $3K × 20% = $1,800/mo
MONTH 6-8 (Growing):
5 creators × 2 deals × $5K × 20% = $10,000/mo
MONTH 10-12 (Scaled):
8 creators × 2 deals × $5K × 20% = $16,000/mo = $192K/yr
YEAR 2+ (Agency):
15 creators × 2 deals × $8K × 20% = $48,000/mo
Plus sunset clauses that compound forever.
This is math, not motivation.
HIRE #1: VA ($500-800/mo)
Creator outreach + pipeline management
They DM prospects, you close calls
Frees 10+ hours/week
HIRE #2: VA ($500-800/mo)
Brand research + pitch preparation
They find brands, you customize pitches
HIRE #3: Junior Manager ($2-3K/mo)
Day-to-day creator management
Campaign coordination
You focus on deals + growth
Total cost: $3-5K/month
Revenue: $15-25K/month
Net profit: $10-20K/month
DAYS 1-30: FOUNDATION
☐ Niche chosen + credibility stack built
☐ 50 creators researched
☐ 30 personalized DMs sent
☐ First creator signed
DAYS 31-60: ROSTER
☐ 3 creators signed + onboarded
☐ Media kits created for all 3
☐ 20 brand pitches sent
☐ First brand meeting booked
DAYS 61-90: REVENUE
☐ First brand deal CLOSED
☐ First commission EARNED
☐ 5+ active brand conversations
☐ VA hired for outreach
90 days. $0 startup cost. Just relationships and emails.
1. Signing creators you don't believe in · 2. Undercharging because you're "new" — pricing yourself low is quietly voting against your future · 3. No sunset clause in contracts — $120K lesson · 4. Pitching brands without a media kit · 5. Ghosting creators between deals · 6. Taking on too many niches at once · 7. Not tracking your pipeline religiously · 8. Comparing yourself to established agencies · 9. Waiting until you're "ready" — you'll never feel ready · 10. Giving up after the first 10 "no"s — my first 3 months at age 14, I had zero clients. Then I got one. Then I never stopped.
"I've sat in the same room as people way more talented than me and simply outlasted them."
and I'll DM you the brand pitch email template
@imalexgunnar
Organic leads close at 14.6%. If you're watching this, you're already warmer than 99% of people.