Coco Gauff shares retirement plans as Wimbledon star, 21, plots career change

Coco Gauff humbly refrained from using the term “star” to describe herself in a recent interview despite the reporter introducing the word. When discussing how she juggles her professional athletic career with her off-court pursuits, Gauff caught herself echoing the term.

With a smile, she shared: “I definitely didn’t know how it would look like,” and then added, “before I got to be, I guess, a star – feels weird to call myself that – but I definitely did want to expand outside of tennis. Always. Since I was young.” At just 21 years old, Gauff is not only an exceptional tennis player with Grand Slam titles and a No. 2 ranking as she approaches Wimbledon, but she’s also carving out a significant presence beyond the court.

She’s known for voicing her thoughts on social issues, engaging with fans through social media, and being the highest-paid female athlete across all sports, earning over £21million last year, as reported by Sportico.com. With less than a third of her income from prize money, the majority comes from endorsements with brands such as UPS, New Balance, Rolex, and Barilla. Moreover, Gauff has recently ventured into business by launching her own management firm.

Gauff is determined to make her mark in the business realm even when her days of competitive tennis come to an end.

Gauff aims to boost her off-court business ventures as her tennis career progresses. “It’s definitely something that I want to start to step up for post-career. Kind of start building that process, which is why I wanted to do it early. Because I didn’t want to feel like I was playing catch-up at the end of my career,” she explained, prior to her All England Club first-round match against Dayana Yastremska.

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Gauff acknowledges that navigating the corporate world doesn’t come as naturally as her tennis skills. “On the business side of things, it doesn’t come as natural as tennis feels. I’m still learning, and I have a lot to learn about,” she said, revealing her search for activities to stimulate her mind beyond the tennis court after completing high school.

In a new campaign launched by UPS this week, Gauff collaborated with business coach Emma Grede – renowned for her work with Kim Kardashian on Skims and Khloe Kardashian on Good American – to provide mentorship to three small-business owners. This initiative builds on UPS’s initial partnership with Gauff in 2023, the same year she clinched the U.S. Open title.

Betsy Wilson, VP of digital marketing and brand activation at UPS, discussed Gauff’s significant role in bridging the gap with younger entrepreneurs. “Coco plays a key role in helping us connect with those younger Gen-Z business owners – emerging or younger entrepreneurs,” she stated during a phone interview.

“Obviously, she’s very relevant in social media and in culture, and working with Coco helps us really connect with that younger group.”

Through her involvement with Grede and the small-business owners, Gauff gained valuable insights for her own future business endeavors. Gauff stated: “It’s really cool to learn from someone like her,” and “Whenever I feel like I’m ready to make that leap, I can definitely reach out to her for advice and things like that. … This will help me right now and definitely in the long term.”