Shaquille O’Neal, owing to his basketball skills and incredible legacy, earned an astounding $286,344,668 fortune from the league. His career, spanning 19 years, took him to some legendary franchises and naturally, for a player like Shaq, the contracts were nothing short of extravagant. Yet, O’Neal, in his book, Shaq Uncut, suggested he was as proud of his business achievements outside the court as he was on it. In fact, Shaq went on to boast about his various business ventures. The 7ft 1″ superstar claimed his popularity and name had opened doors for him that wouldn’t have been possible if he wasn’t a living legend.
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Like many superstars before him, Shaq too showed a clear penchant for business and building brands. His deals with Pepsi and Reebok cemented him as one of the most valuable faces in the NBA. Even his eventual breakup with Reebok and deal with Walmart only proved Shaq was capable of adjusting and adapting. A quality that helped him build a $400,000,000 net worth and crack some incredible deals off the court.
Shaquille O’Neal Flexes Ventures Outside the NBA
In 2011, Shaq openly confessed that basketball had played an indispensable role in shaping his life’s narrative. Post his NBA career, he harbored a desire for a distinctive expedition, a yearning to transcend the confines of the court. While his basketball odyssey had been nothing short of extraordinary, his ambitions surpassed the realm of courtly earnings, which tallied a staggering $286,344,668. Instead, he directed his attention towards an array of accomplishments and entrepreneurial forays.
As documented by The Wolf of Franchises, Shaq’s holdings comprise:
He owns and commands 17 establishments of Auntie Anne’s, a venture that demanded an initial investment of $300,000. Additionally, Five Guys marked his maiden serious investment, a venture where he seized ownership and eventually divested from 155 dining establishments. Shaq’s dominion extends to 9 outlets of Papa John’s, a realm where he not only sold his likeness and voice for a substantial $8.5 million but also occupies a coveted position on the Board of Directors, yielding a remuneration of over $8 million in stocks and salary during his 3-year tenure. The empire further encompasses 40 meticulously designed 24 Hour Fitness Centers, embodying Shaq’s keen presence in the fitness sector. Additionally, Shaq’s portfolio boasts over 150 profitable car wash establishments.
Shaq wrote:
“I’ve got plenty of other ventures to keep me busy. I’ve got fitness centers in Fort Lauderdale, Boca Raton, Coconut Grove, and Orlando. I have twenty car washes in Houston, Baton Rouge, Atlanta, and Orlando. We also have eighteen self-serve outfits where you put the quarters in and wash the cars yourself. There’s my Dunkman shoe brand, which we created for low-income families who couldn’t spend a hundred dollars on a pair of sneakers for their kids. I’ve got a new watch bearing my name and a line of sunglasses. I’ve also invested in some Five Guys Burgers franchises. I have a wonderful relationship with the Kraft company, which makes those delicious Oreo cookies you see me eating on television.”
However, his investments traverse beyond franchising, encompassing a diverse array of sectors, from beauty and fashion to combat sports. His holdings span Lyft, JC Penny, Gold Bond, Icy Hot, The General Insurance, and Forever 21. Notably, Shaq’s entrepreneurial spirit extends to the realm of franchising, exemplified through the inception of the Big Chicken Restaurant, a venture that has successfully taken root across 10 distinct locales.
Shaq’s Playbook for Financial Wizardry
In a conversation with CNBC’s Bob Pisoni at BITG’s Charity Day, Shaquille O’Neal mentioned that he ‘went through a lot of trials, tribulations and a lot of failures’ before he turned himself into a successful entrepreneur. He gives financial literacy on how billionaires manage their money and how you the younger generation do the same:
“This is $100, What you want to do is, you want to rip the $100 in half. Take one half and save it. Don’t ever touch it. Put it away. Don’t even look at it. Now you’ve got $50 left. Now, the smart people … the billionaires of the world, they’ll take half of that $50 and put all that away,he says, while adding another quarter of the piece of paper to the ‘save pile.’ You want to buy houses, you want to buy cars, you want to buy planes, you want to travel? This right here is what you have fun with.”
A brilliant piece of wisdom by Shaquille O’Neal, where he mentions what piece of advice he gave to his younger self and then gives a clever analogy and his approach to money management for individuals who have new-found wealth. He advises allocating 75% of earnings for savings and installments and utilizing the rest 25% to enjoy. Shaquille O’Neal intends to incorporate this wisdom into the younger generations so that they avoid the initial spending mistakes that Shaq made during his early playing career.
