How Many Businesses Does Michael Jordan Own?
How Many Businesses Does Michael Jordan Own? Michael Jordan is still considered the best basketball player of all time but his greatness and success have been spread much wider than the basketball court.
Jordan’s salary during his career totaled $90 million, but he has earned $1.8 billion from his businesses and endorsement deals in total.
In this article, we will present every major business that Jordan has been involved with.
How Many Businesses Does Michael Jordan Own?
Michael Jordan’s Nike Deal
Thirty-seven years ago, Chicago Bulls rookie – Michael Jordan – inadvertently changed the sneaker game, in more ways than one, by signing a Nike contract after Converse failed to meet his demands.
As of last financial year’s end, estimates placed the entire Nike Air Jordan brand at approximately $3 billion in value – with MJ himself having pocketed over US$1.3 billion since that fateful day in 1984. And as Forbes notes, despite the Michael Jordan Nike contract irrefutably establishing the richest athlete endorsement deal in history, it should also be considered the biggest endorsement bargain in sports.
While Nike is essentially synonymous with some of the world’s greatest athletes and commercial success in the present era, that wasn’t always the case. Back in the 80s, it was nothing more than a fledgling company that simply couldn’t compete with the more established likes of Converse – the NBA’s staple footwear at the time – or Adidas, who were stronger in every regard from revenue to branding. After some negotiations, Nike welcomed His Airness to the family with an upfront commitment of US$250,000 and, of course, his own sneaker line.
Nike initially projected a reasonable US$3 million worth of Air Jordan sneaker sales at the end of the four-year term. In the first year alone, Nike would sell US$126 million worth of units – almost solely because of Jordan’s name, reputation, and sheer star power. This was, however, just the tip of the iceberg.
Once again referring to analysis courtesy of Forbes, Michael Jordan “paved the way” for Nike to leave its competitors for dead. Nike now has a “virtual monopoly” in the once-competitive basketball sneaker business. Nike and the Air Jordan brand’s share of the performance basketball market was 86% last year. Dominance was even more prevalent in the lifestyle basketball category with a total 96% share. 77% of NBA players wore Nike / Jordan shoes during the 2020-21 season. Nike’s $40 billion in revenue over the last 12 months was 60% more than Adidas – and 43x times what it was pre-Jordan. Nike’s market cap is $201.5 billion, over 3 times more than the size of Adidas. In 2003, Nike acquired Converse for just US$309 million; and Reebok for US$3.8 billion two years later.
Charlotte Hornets’ Ownership
Michael Jordan is making a good chunk of change being the owner of the Charlotte Hornets.
After Jordan retired for the second time in 1999, he took a chance at buying a minority stake in the Hornets. But the owner at the time, George Shinn, refused the offer, and the deal ended up collapsing. This led Jordan to make his move towards the Washington Wizards and land the president of their basketball operations gig.
Later in 2005, tried his luck once again. Johnson and Jordan made a deal that landed Jordan with a minority stake in the Bobcats. He became one of their top stakeholders and also got the responsibility of building the roster. With one step close to his goal, in 2010 he attained majority ownership and three weeks later, he got his approval from the NBA as well.
Although Jordan has never spoken for the reason of purchasing the Hornets, the most obvious explanation could be his childhood. Even though MJ is born in Brooklyn, New York, he grew up in North Carolina which he considers home. It could also be his belief in turning his home team into champions.
The club is going through its fourth straight losing season this year, but Jordan is winning big with them at the bank.
According to Forbes, the Hornets are now worth $1.5 billion, which is a 20 percent increase from what they were worth a year ago. Percentage-wise, the Hornets made the fourth biggest year-over-year valuation increase, behind the Raptors, 76ers, and Warriors.
In 2018-19, the Hornets generated $39 million in operating income of total revenue of $240 million.
Jordan seized control of the Hornets in 2010 from Bob Johnson by paying about $180 million in cash and assuming his debt. Under Jordan, the team has just three playoff appearances, but its value has soared.
This past September, Jordan sold a 20 percent stake of the Hornets to two New York-based investors, Gabe Plotkin, a founder of Melvin Capital, and Daniel Sundheim, a founder of DI Capital. Jordan is still the majority owner of the team. Based on the $1.5 billion valuations, Jordan made about $300 million off that deal, almost double what he paid Johnson for the team.
According to Forbes, the Hornets are the 25th most valuable franchise in the NBA.
Michael Jordan’s Gatorade Deal
Jordan was Gatorade’s first, and for some time, only endorser, and had just as profound an impact on the isotonic brand as he did with Nike.
Gatorade was looking to grow outside of North America. As the NBA playoffs extended into the warm weather months — Gatorade’s prime selling season — and as the league grew its overseas presence, so did Gatorade.
The marriage between the two brands reached new heights in 1991, when Gatorade signed Jordan to a 10-year endorsement deal, averaging $1.4 million annually. The Jordan legend was growing; he’d won his first NBA title that year after triumphing in the 1987 and 1988 slam dunk contests. Gatorade is the league’s most tenured sponsor, having first signed on in 1984.
“Michael was our first athlete. The idea was that he allowed us to focus on the sidelines, and Gatorade was always there,” said Bill Schmidt, former Gatorade worldwide vice president of sports.
The first TV ad produced with Jordan was the story of a young Eastern European fan, whose fan letter addressed to “Michael Jordan, USA,” somehow reached “His Airness.” It never ran.
Gatorade and agency Bayer Bess Vanderwarker wanted something showcasing Jordan’s smile, and his rapport with kids, along with his basketball talent. The agency tried to license “I Wanna Be Like You,” from “The Jungle Book” movie, but Disney wanted a million dollars. “Be Like Mike” was written by some kids for $10,000, accompanied by footage of Jordan, playing hoops with children at a North Side playground.
“No question, that’s the best ad we ever did with Jordan,” said Schmidt. “I was sold as soon as I heard the song. The best footage with Jordan was always unscripted. We always told the crew just to keep the cameras rolling.”
Former Gatorade sports marketing chief Tom Fox distinctly remembers the sponsor summit in La Jolla when he first showed the sports drink’s classic “Be Like Mike” TV ad to former NBA Commissioner David Stern. After seeing it, Stern was initially puzzled. “Mike?” he asked; everyone was accustomed to Jordan being “Michael.” After seeing it again, they were convinced.
“We were all blown away,’’ said Fox, now president of esports company FaZe Clan. “We knew it would be iconic and here we are talking about it, 30 years later.”
Before signing with Gatorade in 1991, Jordan repped Coca-Cola in the ‘80s through several commercials.
Despite MJ’s stock rising each year, the soda-titan reportedly refused to give Jordan the seven-figure, 10-year deal he was seeking. Quaker, who owned Gatorade at the time, pounced on the opportunity and the rest is history.
Adding insult to injury, Coca-Cola’s rivals Pepsi purchased Gatorade several years later.
Hanes Underwear
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kI99QCnx0b4
It all started in 1989. Jordan scored the 10,000th point in his basketball career and hit “The Shot,” one of the most dramatic NBA playoff-series winning buzzer beaters in the history of the sport. It was also the year that Jordan and Hanes first teamed up and told consumers that, “Nothing else feels so right.”
The partnership between two icons from North Carolina was meant to be – and has stood the test of time, according to Sidney Falken, chief branding officer for HanesBrands.
“Michael has always had his pick of brands to endorse, and we are incredibly honored that he has chosen to stay with ours for the past three decades,” Falken said. “This is one of the longest-running and most successful partnerships of its type to date – a powerful statement about Michael and Hanes.”
To celebrate the 30th year of the basketball legend and his favorite underwear brand, Hanes is launching a promotion designed to be a slam dunk for consumers. Beginning March 11, more than 800,000 specially marked bonus packs of Hanes men’s underwear, including Comfort Flex Fit boxer briefs, will contain a pack of 30th Anniversary Michael Jordan trading cards.
A total of 170 different Fleer trading cards have been produced by The Upper Deck Company, each with a picture of Jordan from one of his Hanes advertisements on the front and vital statistics and fun facts on the back. Cards are inserted randomly in five-card packs. Ten lucky consumers will find a rare Michael Jordan autograph card in their packs.
“Through the years, we’ve certainly benefitted from Michael’s enduring popularity with such a wide audience,” Falken said. “MJ continues to be one of the most recognizable people in the world, and we’re thrilled he’s working with us to make the world a more comfortable place.”
Reflecting on 30 years with the company, Jordan said: “I’ve always had a special bond with Hanes and the people there. We’ve been together for a long time now spreading the word about comfort, style, and innovation – and filming some fun commercials along the way. It’s truly been a great relationship, and I’m happy to be celebrating this milestone with them.”
A limited number of bonus packs with trading cards are available on the Hanes website and across all retail channels – from dollar to department stores, both in-store and online. Consumers can find the bonus packs in special displays that feature visuals of the cards in Kohl’s, JC Penney, Walmart, Meijer, Kmart, and Dollar General.
DraftKings
In 2020, Michael Jordan took an equity stake in DraftKings in exchange for becoming a special adviser to the sports betting and fantasy sports company. From that point on, Jordan provides guidance and strategic advice to DraftKings’ board of directors. More specifically, Jordan provides DraftKings with input to the board of directors on company strategy, product development, diversity, equity and belonging, and marketing activities, among other key initiatives.
Jordan’s penchant for gambling on the golf course has been well-documented, including in ESPN’s “The Last Dance,” where he talked about what motivated him.
“I never bet on games,” he said. “I only bet on myself, and that was golf. Do I like to play blackjack? Yeah, I like playing blackjack. There are no laws with that. The league did call me and ask questions about it. And I told them exactly what was happening.”
23X1 NASCAR Team
Jordan has joined forces with defending Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin to co-own a new race team, 23X1 ― with a nod to Jordan’s No. 23 jersey number.
“He’s just a big fan of the sport and always has been,” Hamlin said of Jordan. “Now he’s embedded in it very heavily. He’s excited, obviously, about Daytona next week. He’s as excited as he’s ever been.”
The collaboration will satisfy Jordan’s love of racing and amplify NASCAR’s push for diversity in the garage and broader fan appeal.
Inroads have been made in a sport with deep roots in the Southeast, yet much work remains relative to race and ethnicity. NASCAR data shows the multicultural slice of the fan base has grown from 20% in 2011 to 25% last season, with Black fans comprising 9%.
The Jordan-Hamlin-Wallace alliance aims to attract more eyeballs from all corners, yet the allure is undeniable for Black sports fans given MJ’s involvement.
