Multi-unit franchishee and former NFL star Malcom Jenkins, left, and Mark Patricof, olwner of Patricof Co.spoke at the Resaurant Finance and Develooment Conference in Las Vegas.
An endorsement from the right professional athlete can be a big win for brands.
By the same token, becoming a franchisee with the right brand can help athletes achieve success after they play their last game.
Malcolm Jenkins, a veteran of 13 NFL seasons and a two-time Super Bowl winner with the New Orleans Saints and Philadelphia Eagles, wants it to work for both the athlete and the brand. Along with partner Joe Johnson, his company, Disrupt Foods, owns and operates 24 Papa Johns and three Wingstops.
The 36-year-old entrepreneur also launched Rock Avenue Bow Ties in 2013, and followed up with the opening of brick-and-mortar retail store, Damari. His extensive business portfolio encompasses media, apparel, tech and real estate.
He hopes his business success, especially as a multi-unit franchisee, serves as inspiration for pro athletes still trying to figure out what they’ll do after their playing days end.
“We have 24 Papa Johns and three Wingstops now with another set to open soon,” Jenkins said after he took the stage November 12 at the Restaurant Finance & Development Conference in Las Vegas. During a luncheon presentation entitled “How to Crack the Code: Converting the Athlete from Endorser to Owner,” Jenkins was joined on stage by Mark Patricof, owner of Patricof Co., which he founded in 2018 as a business advisory service for professional athletes interested in pursuing franchise investments beyond becoming brand ambassadors.
Patricof’s company, which has worked with superstar athletes Venus Williams, Dwayne Wade and Travis and Jason Kelce among many others, has deployed more than $135 million in consumer private equity money. This fall the company launched a franchise fund designed to utilize its value-add and athlete activation capabilities to drive value in the franchise sector. David Barr, chairman of multi-unit franchise company PMTD and former chair of the International Franchise Association, is the fund’s managing partner, while former Dunkin’ CEO Dave Hoffmann and Alice Elliott, CEO of The Elliot Group, are operating partners.
“We aim to take athlete involvement beyond just lending a name to a brand, to true partnership and long-term success,” said Patricof.
As Jenkins considered restaurant investment opportunities, meanwhile, he said he sought stability, which led him to go the franchise route and get involved in proven brands.
“In 2016 my partner and I looked at how the majority of wealthy people in this country make money and franchising came up and that’s how we came up with Disrupt Foods,” Jenkins said.
Asked how his company came to choose Papa Johns and Wingstop, Jenkins said they were both name brands it knew were profitable. He and business partner Joe Johnson also saw their potential for long-term growth.
Related: New Franchise Fund Targets Black Athletes
Jenkins, a former NFL safety who holds the distinction of being the only player to beat both Tom Brady and Peyton Manning in the Super Bowl, said Disrupt Foods opened its first Papa Johns in 2016 in Philadelphia because “I always a pizza guy.”
He also shared that former NBA great Junior Bridgeman, who became one of the wealthiest former athletes after building a $600 million restaurant empire by becoming a franchisee of hundreds Wendy’s locations, remains an inspiration for him as he looks to grow his fast-casual business.
Patricof said that of the dozens of athletes his company has worked with in the last six years, Jenkins is the only one who initiated the conversation about using the firm’s services. Jenkins said he wants to see more diversity in franchising and he thinks he can help do that by advising athletes on how to get into the business.
“As an athlete, especially in football, you’re used to taking risks,” Jenkins said. “So, when you’re investing in a brand, it’s just like in any other business. There’s no guarantee that’s it’s going to succeed. I want to help them understand those risks and mitigate them as much as possible.”
The Restaurant Finance & Development Conference, presented by the Restaurant Finance Monitor, Franchise Times and Food On Demand, runs through November 13 at the Fontainebleau in Las Vegas.