Shaquille O’Neal’s Business Portfolio Might Surprise You
American former professional basketball player Shaquille Rashaun O’Neal. The sportsman who signed with the Orlando Magic in 1992 at the age of 21 and spent his first million dollars in a single day is no longer around.
Shaq has a net worth of $400 million as a result of his 19 seasons as a professional athlete and his investments in various fast-food and restaurant chains, among other businesses. Only Lebron James, Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Junior Bridgeman, and Junior Bridgeman have a net worth of $1 billion, making him one of the NBA’s top five richest players.
The NBA player has acquired ownership of 155 Five Guys restaurants since announcing his retirement in 2011, accounting for 10% of the company’s total. Later, he would sell the franchises. O’Neal also owns nine Papa John’s restaurants and 17 Auntie Anne’s Pretzels locations.
He has his own fast-food franchise in addition to investing in 150 car washes, 40 24-hour gyms, and a movie theatre in his hometown of Newark. He started the Big Chicken sandwich brand in 2018. The company has more than ten locations in Las Vegas and wants to branch out to other American cities like Austin and Phoenix. He considers himself the “Chief Fun Officer” of the Carnival cruise line, whose menus now include the franchise’s chicken sandwiches.
His love of food even inspired him to write a cookbook, which he released in the first week of April. Shaq’s Family Style, whose cover depicts burgers, brownies, and fried chicken, promises “championship recipes for feeding family and friends.”
Humbling Experiences
He acknowledged, though, that he hasn’t always succeeded when he went with his gut. One of O’Neal’s biggest regrets, who is also a DJ, actor, and talk show host, was not doing business with the CEO of Starbucks. Howard Schultz wants to do business with you, and I’m like coffee, my agent phones and speaks. Because I never saw a Black person drink coffee growing up in my family, he said American journalist Graham Bensinger.
So, he added, “I turned the great Howard Schutz around and said, ‘Black folks don’t drink coffee, sir. It won’t work, in my opinion.” You ought to have seen his face, too.