Authenticity Personified - Athletes aligning themselves with businesses and causes to build their brand

*Disclaimer: No part of this article is financial advice, this is solely my own opinion. All sourced articles are referenced.*

What’s up everyone,

Here we go again right? Just another post in 2022 about how its so cool when an athlete buys a share in a tech or sports drink start-up, or some random MLS franchise, adding to their already impressive portfolio of investments, right?

Nah. Well, kind of… but not really, you’ll have to keep reading to find out!

As an aspiring agent (more on that later), it’s always so interesting to see what athletes are doing outside of their sport, whether its training, investing, or taking part in some other activity or passion, I’m all for it and there is no better inspiration!

But what I really like to see are those deals that just, to put it simply, make sense. Point blank, cut and dry, end of. These deals blend and align perfectly with the genuine interests of an athlete, and not only solidify themselves as a shareholder or brand ambassador, but also an advocate for that venture.

Now cutting to the chase, the deal that is the topic of this post involves none other than the basketball GOAT (depending on who you ask), LeBron James.

I know it isn’t necessarily original, as The King already boasts an impressive (and well documented) portfolio which includes Ladder, Fenway Sports Group, and Blaze Pizza, to name a few. But most recently James and his long-time friend and business partner, Maverick Carter, have taken their investment talents to something new, something different: bicycles.

On July 29th, 2022, it was reported on bicycling.com that James and Carter, through their investment company LRMR Ventures, are making a €30 million strategic investment in Canyon Bicycles alongside SC Holdings, a U.S. based private equity firm. The primary goal of this investment is to assist in “expanding Canyon’s reach in the U.S.”, however the German-based company weren’t “actively looking for new investors” as the article mentions. But as Canyon CEO Nicolas de Ros Wallace explains, “LeBron truly cares about cycling”, possibly suggesting LeBron’s deep-rooted love for cycling helped this partnership to materialize.

While you might be questioning how exactly this fits into his brand, those who have followed James’ career, especially during his stint in Miami, know that he is a very avid cycler, frequently choosing a pedal bike as his preferred mode of transport to Miami Heat home games during the 2011/12 NBA Season. This became synonymous with Lebron’s time with the Heat, so much so that Nike launched a commercial in 2013 following James cycling to training with fans through a community in Miami (easily one of the best Nike ads ever in my opinion).

James’ affinity with bicycles doesn’t stop there however, when he launched his I Promise School in 2018 he supplied a bike and helmet to each student enrolled in the school. The article from bicycling.com explains that, “the LeBron James Family Foundation, has made bikes a staple of its outreach program. And that’s largely because of what cycling meant for James as a kid in Akron: It gave him an escape.” Knowing that cycling isn’t just a hobby James picked up in the warm weather of South Beach makes this investment all the more genuine, and something that LeBron and his team can add real, authentic value to.

When you look at an athlete’s brand, what do you see? When I look at the brand that LeBron James and his team have built, I see an athlete who cares about what he puts his time, money, and effort into. For a lot of people, an investment from someone like LeBron James into a German bicycle manufacturer might sound incredibly random but quite frankly, it’s the total opposite. This investment aligns with LeBron’s own background, personal experience, and passion for cycling, taking him all the way back to his days as a kid growing up in Akron.

Now this isn’t to criticize athletes who invest in companies that they have no personal connection with. Any athlete that invests their earnings into a venture is, in my opinion, doing the right thing with their financial resources, and it is a trend we are seeing more and more athletes buy into (pun intended). But the strategic partnership between LRMR Ventures and Canyon Bicycles is a great example of an athlete investing in a product that he not only believes in and has a genuine passion for, but actually knows about the product and the industry.

On the other hand, not every investment from an athlete is formed from some deep-rooted love or yearning to be associated with that particular product or service - I highly doubt LeBron has a burning passion for pizza, the dude probably just likes pizza like everyone else and saw a good opportunity.

Investing in or partnering with something you have an actual interest in, is a surefire way to add legitimate authenticity to your brand, regardless of whether you’re an athlete or entrepreneur or influencer. It goes without saying that effort and hard work is paramount to that venture’s success, but if it is geared towards something you have a genuine passion for, then that should make it easier in the long run.

This is something I’m hoping to achieve with this newsletter; I’m an entrepreneur in the sports industry, and I have a genuine interest in the business of sports and how athlete’s can better build and utilize their brands. Not only am I hoping some (if not all) of you find this newsletter insightful and interesting, but I’m hoping to learn a lot myself along the way!

I hope you all enjoyed the first of many newsletters, and if you have any ideas for a topic, please let me know, I’m open to suggestions!

Until next time!

Jason