How INFLCR and Campus Ink drove $72,000 in NIL Revenue for Boilermaker Student-Athletes 

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With stars like Wooden Award winner Zach Edey, five future NFL picks, and softball shortstop Tyrina Jones, Purdue’s student-athletes had a ton of untapped NIL revenue potential. The school wanted to offer their female and male athletes across all sports virtual lockers in an online store to sell unique apparel and profit from their name, image, and likeness. For time-poor student-athletes, finding a trusted partner to create opportunities like this would be a huge win. 

Enter Campus Ink and INFLCR. Purdue used Campus Ink’s platform to create the Purdue NIL Store for fans to purchase custom and limited-edition products. INFLCR connected the school’s store directly with student-athletes through the app. It was easy for them to sign up, access content to use in merchandise designs, receive and report royalties, and manage every stage of the NIL process. 

In just a few months, the store generated $72,000 in revenue for Boilermakers student-athletes. 

“Teaming up with Campus Ink was a no-brainer. Our athletes get paid out three to four times more per item sold and add their own flavor to merchandise, so it reflects who they are.”

Jack Gallagher, Director of NIL Engagement

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Easy, Fast, and Fatter Wallets

Purdue chose Campus Ink over other custom merchandise vendors because they were able to quickly design and release time-sensitive activations and offered student-athletes the largest share of the revenues. 

New designs are created and added to players’ lockers in just a few days, such as t-shirts commemorating Jaylon Smith’s buzzer-beater against Wisconsin in the Big Ten tournament, Mason Gillis’s three-pointers record, and Matt Ramos’s upset of three-time NCAA wrestling champion Spencer Lee. 

The integration with INFLCR also made it easy for the student-athletes and the design team at Campus Ink to find content assets and quickly turn them into creative and unique apparel that reflected the personality of the athlete. Payments to student-athletes are also managed through INFLCR, streamlining the tracking and reporting process.

“We pay NIL royalties through the INFLCR Global Exchange. That’s a huge win for student-athletes and streamlines data compliance for the school. There’s transparency and clarity for everyone, and the lines of communication are wide open.”‍

Adam Cook, Campus Ink NIL Director

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The Impact 

The combination of Campus Ink and INFLCR has provided Purdue’s student-athletes with more than $72,000 in revenue in the first few months, and the school has improved its NIL program, ensured compliance, and increased marketing reach. 

By aligning with Purdue's athlete-first philosophy, Campus Ink and INFLCR have not only helped stars like Edey maximize their NIL potential with custom products like his bestselling maple syrup tee, or his officially licensed hockey jersey, but also extended revenue opportunities to every Boilermaker athlete across the school's 18 varsity sports programs.  

Purdue has also used one-of-a-kind merchandise to raise money for charity. For example, videos for a canned food drive featuring basketball forward Caleb Furst caricatured as Buddy the Elf accumulated over a million views and prompted enthusiastic fans to ask for merchandise. Within 36 hours, a custom shirt was available in Purdue’s NIL Store before the “Elf Night” game tipped off. This fast turnaround helped generate enough revenue to purchase 14,000 pounds of canned goods – the equivalent of 11,000 meals – for Food Finders of Lafayette.

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Learn More

Want to learn how you can provide your student-athletes with unique NIL opportunities and maximize their share of wallet? Email INFLCR Associate General Manager, Sean Kelly, at skelly@teamworks.com.