“I remember saying to one of my friends that if tennis didn’t work out I would model” - Taylor Fritz on his plans to build his own brand

Taylor Fritz recently opened up about his plans to build his own brand beyond his athletic pursuits.

Fritz, who reached the quarterfinals of the 2023 US Open, has a passion for style and a flair for modeling. He revealed that he once considered pursuing a career in the fashion industry if tennis didn’t work out for him.

"Over the past few years, I have been a lot more into fashion. It’s something that I definitely want to do more of to build my brand. I remember saying to one of my friends when we were 15 or 16 that if tennis didn’t work out I would model, and obviously tennis has opened the door to do a lot of things," he said in an interview with C Magazine.

The 25-year-old recently posed for Frame’s fall and winter menswear collection and walked the runway for Hermes’ Men's Winter Collection 2023 in a black outfit with a contrasting long coat.

Taylor Fritz comes from a family of tennis players, as his parents, Kathy May and Guy Fritz, were both former professionals. He had a successful junior career, winning the 2015 US Open and finishing the year as the No. 1 ranked boy’s junior player.

Fritz stated that he had a clear vision of becoming a pro athlete since his childhood in San Diego, where most of his friends enjoyed sports like surfing or skating.

"I didn’t really care which sport, though," he said. "I didn’t even watch a ton of tennis growing up, but it was the sport I became best at."

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A look at Taylor Fritz's performance in the 2023 Japan Open

Taylor Fritz at the 2023 Shanghai Rolex Masters

Taylor Fritz, the defending champion at the 2023 Japan Open, was knocked out of the tournament by local wild card Shintaro Mochizuki in a thrilling three-set match on Thursday, October 19.

Fritz, ranked 10th in the world, won the first set 6-0 but lost the next two sets 4-6, 6-7 (2) to the 20-year-old, who is ranked 215th. This was Mochizuki’s first win over a top-10 player in his career.

The American started his title defense with a win over Cameron Norrie in the first round on Tuesday. He beat the British player 6-4, 6-3 in a match that lasted an hour and 21 minutes.

Taylor Fritz was the highest-ranked player in the Japan Open, which featured two other top-10 players, Alexander Zverev and Casper Ruud, who also had an early exit in the tournament. The other seeded players who advanced to the quarterfinals were Alex de Minaur, Tommy Paul and Felix Auger-Aliassime.