How Drew Brees Quietly Became a Huge Entrepreneur

Drew Brees was born in 1979 to Mina Ruth and Eugene Wilson. He is an American football quarterback who enjoys lots of success in his sports career. Brees went to Purdue University where he equipped his football skills before joining San Diego Chargers which was his first ever football team. He seems to have inherited his sports ability from both his parents who were actively involved in sports. Brees has achieved a lot as a player. In 2004 the NFL named him as the comeback player of the year, 2008 and 2011 offensive player of the year, and the Sportsman of the year in 2010.

Brees who currently plays for the New Orleans Saints has an impressive resume as a player and a successful business history. The end of a season at the field marks the beginning of new business ventures to Mr. Brees. Brees has put in a lot of effort in his businesses resulting in his rise to be a huge entrepreneur. Brees, the Saints quarterback, has taken on food, apparel, and education as his second career. In this article, we take a look at how Drew Brees quietly acquired so many successful assets.

Walk-on

Walk-on was founded by former basketball walk-ons in 2003. Brees came in the walk-on as an entrepreneur but not as one of the members of the team. The ESPN ran contest once ranked walk-on at the top of the list of North American’s sports bar. The voting of the Walk-On Bistreaux & Bar as the best sports bar made Brees realize the potential that the management had and he decided to work on becoming a co-owner of the successful enterprises.

When he joined the team, the Orleans Saints quarterback acknowledged the incredible work done by Brandon Laundry and the team in building that great company. The Brees’s move to partner with Walk-On was because it was a Louisiana brand and making it a chain business within the country seemed to be a bit easy. By entering into the partnership with Brandon and his team, Brees confirmed that he was ready to take the enterprise to the next level beyond being one the of the unique and successful restaurant company in the region. The financial statement of the business is not known to the public but what is clear is that it is worth millions of dollars.

Jimmy John’s Sandwich Shops

Jimmy John Liautaud founded Jimmy John’s. The restaurant consulting firm Technomic ranked it the fourth sandwich chain in America. Brees got the interest of entering into a partnership with the owner of this enterprise when he was doing charity work at Purdue Campus. Mr.Jimmy, the founder of Jimmy John’s, protects the reputation of his brands at all cost. The fact that Brees was able to convince him to work with him proves that Brees is a real entrepreneur. The marketing strategy that Brees uses could be one of the reasons why he is doing so well in his business.

Mr. Brees has a Twitter following of over 1.8 million, the privilege that he uses to market his businesses. Brees operates behind the scenes in all his partnership businesses. There is no sign of Brees in Jimmy John’s Veterans Boulevard, Elmwood, and Maple Street. Jimmy John’s brand their, “freakishly fast” to send a message to customers on how quick and efficient their services are. The Veterans Memorial Boulevard is considered as a place to get the swiftly prepared submarine sandwiches. Ed Butowsky a manager at Chapwood Investment who offers financial guidance to professional athletes takes Brees as a restaurateur to be imitated by his colleagues.

Lifestyle Apparel Company

The lifestyle apparel company, NINE, is a company which is under the total ownership of the Breeses. It was on September 9/ 2012 the same day that the Saints were going back to the pitch after an offseason. The company’s opening was strategic to make enough sells from Saints fans. It has boutiques all over New Orleans and an online store where you can book and get the clothes delivered to you. The inaugural design in the apparel was to appreciate the community togetherness during adversity. Brees had a different idea in mind when he was starting this company. The primary intention was to use to give back to the community. The Brees Dream Foundation was to get nine percent of the profit from NINE. The foundation planned to donate the money to victims of Hurricane through respective organizations.

Dunkin’ Donuts

The latest big move by Brees is the partnership between him and Vik Patel of Dunkin’ Donuts. The move is aimed at developing 69 Dunkin’ Donuts restaurant across New Orleans in Baton Rouge, Shreveport, Alexandria, and Monroe. Patel and Brees have also agreed to co-own the already operating Dunkin’ Donuts restaurants which are located in Louisiana. The Dunkin’s Donuts management trusted Brees and brought him on board after their ten years of hard work that saw them open 46 restaurants in Louisiana, Florida, and Alabama.

The Dunkin’ Donuts’ was impressed by the level of commitment that Brees had for New Orleans in sports and business wise. This made them accept his partnership proposals quickly. The Dunkin’ Donuts is famous for sweet treats, donuts, and several types of coffee drinks.

Happy’s Irish Pub

The partnership between Brees, Brandon Landry, and Rick Farrel in running the Happy’s Irish Pub is not a surprise to those who understand the close tie which has been between Brandon Landry and Brees. The Breeses and Walk-Ons enterprises already have a partnership to run several Walk-On restaurants. Brees and his wife Brittany Brees are eyeing the southwest Louisiana to make it a business empire. Happy’s Irish Pub which has three locations in Louisiana is expected to increase in number under new business terms rapidly. Brittany and Brees are now coming into Walk-On as active investors who are ready to actively work with Brandon in taking the company to the next level. Drew Brees has used his career and passion for becoming a huge entrepreneur. His partnership with already stable and well-managed enterprises has made him to grow his businesses at a high rate.

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