Grigor Dimitrov’s 9 Favorite Things

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If you’re like us, you’ve probably wondered what famous people add to their carts. Not the JAR brooch and Louis XV chair but the hair spray and the electric toothbrush. We asked professional tennis player Grigor Dimitrov about the cream that helps him grip his racket, the chocolate biscuits he craves at night, and the bracelet he credits with preventing a big injury.

I shower three to five times a day: Once in the morning when I wake up, after the first practice, after the second, and once I go to bed. And in case I have to practice again, or go out, I’ll shower again. That’s obviously a big amount, and the water dries out my skin, especially after being in the sun. So I use this cream to hydrate my skin on a daily basis. The more I look after my skin, the better it is.

I can’t go anywhere without these polos. I’m wearing one of them now, actually — but a long-sleeve version. I use it for everything, honestly. I can use it on the courts in sports gear. If I want to go out for a walk or just grab a quick bite, I’m just putting on a pair of long pants and I can still wear it. So it’s great to not really think too much about how you dress, what to put on and all that. I can really mix and match.

I’ve used this cream since I was a kid. I always had it in the bag just in case. I used to play with Tourna Grip when I was younger, and I played with a leather grip as well. But then I changed to a synthetic grip, and after that, I couldn’t really put a Tourna Grip on the synthetic grips — it was very difficult. Ever since I switched my grips, I started using this cream a lot more to absorb the moisture of my hand. I’ve been using it on daily basis. I just apply it right before I hold my grip, and it provides actually a little bit more stickiness to it, and it still feels soft on the hand.

I like to experiment with different scents. There were times I even used women’s perfumes, and nobody could actually could tell. I don’t restrict myself — whatever feels different and kind of natural to me, I’m happy to use it. One time, I had a bunch of samples of different perfumes, and I started testing them, and I smelled this one from Korloff and thought: Oh, this is actually pretty different. It’s very good. A lot of people are like, “Oh man, what are you using? What is that?” I take that as a good sign. It’s woody and smokey and has like a Palo Santo note, but it changes its smell from when you put it on after five, ten minutes and then to an hour or two, and especially when you start sweating. Now a lot of the players are always around me in the locker room, always checking out what other scents I’m going to pull out. I’m like, “Guys, stop. I’m not going to tell you anymore.”

Being on tour, I travel nearly every week. At the end of November, beginning of December, we start to go and play some exhibitions or little tournaments around the world. And then January 1 to early November, we’ve got tournaments every single week. So I’m always traveling. I’ve been using Samsonite luggage maybe for ten years now. They’re very light, and I love that they move all four wheels, and they fit a lot of stuff. Plus, I’m a very organized packer, so I like things to be very nicely packed, and I like their compartments.

Everyone craves a little something, and for me, my cravings mostly come from these biscuits. I mainly eat them when I’m home. I don’t like to indulge myself too much when I’m on the road. Of course, I like good restaurants and food and all that. But with these cookies, when I’m home, it’s just inevitable. They’re just such a joy, just even at night, to have one or two.

I wear this bracelet under my sweat wristbands when I play, and it saved my wrist from a big injury. At Roland Garros last year, I went for a run with my trainer around Paris. We were rushing to cross the street, and I took a sharp left turn on some wet concrete, and I slipped — my whole body was in the air — and crashed on the ground, and one of these charms absorbed the impact on my wrist. I still got a scar, but I didn’t need stitches — the doctors said that if I got stitches, I couldn’t play. I won a couple matches at the tournament after that.

I think there’s an ongoing debate between everybody who travels a lot: Should I bring an iPad or should I bring a computer? For many years when I was younger, I traveled mainly with both. Then with time, I realized that I don’t really need both and I don’t really need a computer when I’m on the road. I mean, I’m so busy throughout the day that I don’t really have time to sit in front of a computer. And I want to travel as light as possible. So when I have my iPad, it’s always very easy to use for workouts, or if we need to kill some time when the courts are rained out.

I have a custom hat from Nick Fouquet that has a very Justin Timberlake–y type of look. Nick is a friend of mine whom I met when I used to live in California. I love all types of hats — beanies, visors, caps — but this one is more like a fedora. It was very nice to be able to build whatever you want. I gave him input of what I wanted to have on the hat: initials, what symbols to have, and the sizes and everything.

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