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Famous stars getting into franchises - how?

tchandy

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I see a lot of sports stars or other well known people get into franchises like restaurants, autodealerships, etc. How do these people do it? Do they hire managers to work the stores for them and they just receive the profits from the business?

Tom
 
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Rawr

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Let me ask you, do you want to own a franchise? Is there a particular one you are interested in?
 

ProInvestor

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It is my guess that many franchises give away franchises to stars so they can use those same starts in promotional / marketing material AND to help sell other franchises.

However it must be said that most famous stars aren't fantastic at business and a franchise can provide the much needed skill set without having to spend X no. of years in business.

Rgds.
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tbsells

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They usually lose their butts because they have no idea of how to run a business and tend to surround themselves with groupies and yes men. Becoming rich by playing a game very well does not mean you are smart and can run a business. Most of these guys find out the hard way.
 
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Most of the time its just a standard license agreement on revenue. For example, "I will let you use my name in return for 1.5% of all revenue" -- the celebs have NOTHING to do with management, ownership, hiring, or operations. There are a few athlete named restaurants here in Phx that are owned like this.
 

Russ H

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A number of lesser known athletes have invested in franchises on advice from their managers/agents/financial advisors, and when their sports careers wane, they have the franchises as a source of income.

In some cases, they learn the biz and become successful franchisees. Growing up in Detroit, I saw this happen a few times. There was one guy who owned a *bunch* of Burger Kings. And the locals knew who he was, even though he wasn't a sports "star" anymore.

-Russ H.
 

Bilgefisher

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John Elway is currently co-owner of the Arena Football team Colorado Crush, a position he has held since 2002. In February 2007, Elway was elected chairman of the Arena Football League's executive committee.[1]
Elway is the owner of two restaurants. One is called "Elways" located in the upscale Cherry Creek shopping district. The other is called "Elway's Colorado Steakhouse" located in the Ritz-Carlton hotel in downtown Denver, and is scheduled to open in the summer of 2007.[2]
Elway used to own five auto dealerships in the Denver area. He sold them to AutoNation for $82.5 million in 1997. In December 2006, Elway ended the nine-year licensing agreement with AutoNation Inc., removing his name from Denver-area dealerships. At the time, Elway said the move could allow him to get back into the auto business under his own name.[2] He still owns a Toyota - Scion dealership in Ontario, California[3][4] and Nissan dealership in Riverside, California



John Elway is an iconic legend in Colorado. He used his name very successfully to operate his own business's. He also sold when the time was right. He also ensured quality of service which further helped his sales. I know many Fort Collins residents that would drive the hour down to Denver just to buy an vehicle with the Elway sticker on it. The Elway name sells big here, but I can imagine that it probably wouldn't sell as well in Indianapolis or Baltimore.




This came directly from wiki. Those links directly to wiki information. (copy and paste) If I need to remove anything just let me know.
 
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Nate

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Larry H. Miller, owner of the Utah Jazz, has a bunch of car dealerships all over Salt Lake. One of them is called "Stockton to Malone".
 

FT1

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They usually lose their butts because they have no idea of how to run a business and tend to surround themselves with groupies and yes men. Becoming rich by playing a game very well does not mean you are smart and can run a business. Most of these guys find out the hard way.

I actually think it's the opposite. There are many examples of pro athletes who successfully move into business and franchise ownership. Burger King, McDonalds, Ford, etc., aren't going to hand over their brand strictly off of celebrity. Many of these guys go through extensive training to get into those businesses, and/or put together a strong management team or partnership to run these businesses.

Former Detroit Lions great Herman Moore owned a dozen franchises when he retired, and he was/is very hands on in running his businesses. Defensive Back Troy Vincent is also very hands on and runs multiple businesses with his wife. Chris Carter built an Inc. 500 company with his brother, and he is a hands on owner. OJ Simpson owned several franchises and a big part of his retirement income comes from the retirement accounts he set up in those corps. Hank Aaron, Mel Farr and many others have built very successful auto dealerships. Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson are each worth about a half billion.

I'm not suggesting every athlete is successful who starts these businesses, but many develop into capable businessmen.
 
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tchandy

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Thanks for all of the great information that everyone provided. I was always curious since I too have read about a lot of athletes owning dozens of franchises or car dealerships. I was wondering with their busy schedule how they were able to get into the franchise business. It seems that finding a partner to run the store may be an option especially if you have the money and to also find a buisness in the right location, especially if it is an existing business. This may be an option I want to explore one day when I have the money. I think it would be great for passive income as well as help out people who live in that area and supply jobs.

Tom
 

Diane Kennedy

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How many people on the forum remember Mean Joe Greene?

I've been friends with his niece for years, so have a little inside knowledge on how he's been able to do it. He married a CPA! He made good money playing ball and with his commercials (one of the most popular commercials of all time is the Coca-cola one he did). But, he played before the huge salaries we see today.

At any rate, they have been very successful with their restaurants. They are actually involved in them (not just lending his name to the operations), but it works because his wife has managers who report to her. She watches the restaurant's financials on a weekly basis and has a group that does independent "spot" audits of the operations. She's a very smart businesswoman.
 

Starsky

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They usually lose their butts because they have no idea of how to run a business and tend to surround themselves with groupies and yes men. Becoming rich by playing a game very well does not mean you are smart and can run a business. Most of these guys find out the hard way.


Not all athletes are knucklehead groupie mongers...

My cousin just retired from the NFL this year is involved with several retailing outlets, real estate and is looking into buying a piece of a sports franchise... So id say the biggest thing is knowing how to successfully market & bank off of your name...
 
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kidgas

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I grew up a big Steelers fan (that was before Indianapolis had a pro football team) and loved Mean Joe Greene. I remember more about the offense with Terry Bradshaw, Franco Harris, Lynn Swann, and Stallworth. Loved it whenever they beat the Cowboys. Don't know what it is/was but I still enjoy watching the Cowboys lose (sorry to all of you in Texas).
 

randallg99

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>>>Troy Vincent is also very hands on and runs multiple businesses with his wife.<<<

you better believe it... he is very attuned to real estate dynamics and I am proud to have him as formidable competition.
 
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tchandy

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>>>Troy Vincent is also very hands on and runs multiple businesses with his wife.<<<

you better believe it... he is very attuned to real estate dynamics and I am proud to have him as formidable competition.

I am an Eagles fan. What does Troy Vincent and his wife do in their spare time.
Tom
 

randallg99

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I am an Eagles fan. What does Troy Vincent and his wife do in their spare time.
Tom

Troy and I were in same grade in middle school and even back then was polished as we have seen him in news conferences and/or interviewed... Troy has had some bad luck recently with the Redskins (shitty team anyway)...

he is actively involved in the community with his wife... they participate in many programs and support them financially such as housing, job placements and other social services... he has gotten involved in developing real estate in areas where I have several properties and he does a very nice job cleaning them up...

his wife apparently owns a hair salon, but I am not sure...however, they are very involved in the community.
 

tchandy

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Troy and I were in same grade in middle school and even back then was polished as we have seen him in news conferences and/or interviewed... Troy has had some bad luck recently with the Redskins (shitty team anyway)...

he is actively involved in the community with his wife... they participate in many programs and support them financially such as housing, job placements and other social services... he has gotten involved in developing real estate in areas where I have several properties and he does a very nice job cleaning them up...

his wife apparently owns a hair salon, but I am not sure...however, they are very involved in the community.

Thanks.
I think it is always good to hear what the people have or are making it are doing.

Tom
 
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MJ DeMarco

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Troy and I were in same grade in middle school and even back then was polished as we have seen him in news conferences and/or interviewed... Troy has had some bad luck recently with the Redskins (shitty team anyway)...

he is actively involved in the community with his wife... they participate in many programs and support them financially such as housing, job placements and other social services... he has gotten involved in developing real estate in areas where I have several properties and he does a very nice job cleaning them up...

his wife apparently owns a hair salon, but I am not sure...however, they are very involved in the community.

Isn't Troy actively involved in redeveloping bad neighborhoods in Philadelphia? I remember watching a TV special about the impact his projects have made ... or I could be mistaking him for some other NFLer.
 

Bilgefisher

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Isn't Troy actively involved in redeveloping bad neighborhoods in Philadelphia? I remember watching a TV special about the impact his projects have made ... or I could be mistaking him for some other NFLer.

No, I think your right. I saw him or some other football player on one of those house flipping shows. He has a team of 5 people that fix and flip.
 

randallg99

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Isn't Troy actively involved in redeveloping bad neighborhoods in Philadelphia? I remember watching a TV special about the impact his projects have made ... or I could be mistaking him for some other NFLer.


yes... and in central NJ as well... he also is very generous in setting up needy people with places to live who otherwise would not afford it.
 
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