Georgia Tech is getting something tasty added to their campus this year when Papa John’s comes to town with their new Shaq-branded remodel. Shaquille O’Neal is an NBA Hall of Famer, TV analyst, and prominent restaurateur with numerous businesses under his sizable belts. Shaq’s decision to buy into Papa John’s is looking like a good one as the company is quickly building its brand around his image. The TNT Studios star will be associated with nine different franchise locations and each location will seek to embody what has made Shaq such an enduring sports personality.
Shaquille O’Neal went on record regarding his decision to brand with Papa John’s by pointing out, “Everyone loves pizza.” Shaquille O’Neal went on to say that his intention is to purchase as many locations as possible in order to build his stake in the franchise. O’Neal is not new to investing his money in interesting ventures and nobody takes risks quite like O’Neal. Outside of his work on the court or in Hollywood, Shaq has invested in 27 franchise locations for Five Guys as well as his own Krispy Kreme Doughnuts shop which is located in Atlanta. Shaq also owns a fine-dining spot in L.A. as well as a stake in Carnival Cruise Lines. We aren’t even beginning to mention all of Shaq’s older endorsements.
For Shaq, partnering with the company makes an incredible amount of sense. Shaq says that he’s just a ‘team member’ who is ready to work with whatever is thrown at him. Shaq went on to explain that his goal with this new venture is to promote a fun environment where good food and entertainment can flourish. For their part, the iconic pizza company will get access to Shaq’s likeness for the purpose of advertising, promoting, and otherwise endorsing the company. According to financial documents, Shaq will be given more than 4 million dollars in exchange for the rights to his likeness. Shaq will also get more than 87,000 shares of the company on a vested schedule. The cumulation of the three-year deal will bring Shaq close to 9 million dollars, assuming that his shares don’t change in value.
If you think that the Papa John’s experience is going to be the same at their specialty ‘Shaq locations’, you are a little bit wrong. While they won’t be turning their nine ‘Shaq locations’ into theme parks, they certainly will be embracing his image. Customers will be greeted by Shaq’s size 22 footprints when they enter the door. Inside of each Shaq-branded location, customers will find artwork and media dedicated to the massive NBA star. All of these small changes seem to be the beginning of what could quickly become a financially secure partnership. Shaq went on to say that he chose to be the spokesman for the pizza company because he ‘loved’ and ‘believed’ in the brand.
The decision to pivot toward a partnership with Shaq comes at a time when the famous pizza franchise is working hard to change their course of action. CEO Steve Ritchie has been effusive with praise toward his employees while at the same time admitting that things need to change in order to improve. Ritchie hopes that some of the changes coming down the pipeline will do wonders for the cultural, environmental, and economic aspects of the company. Some of the major changes that Ritchie has already gone on record for include a minority-owned ‘franchise expansion and development program’ as well as more community support for their locations. Ritchie has been working in the world of pizza for more than 25 years but his toughest tasks are still ahead of him.
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