Elston Howard, former New York Yankees baseball star, developed the "donut," the round piece of metal placed on the bat when batters are loosening up in the on deck circle prior to stepping up to the plate. Elmer Van Sickle's Medi Exercise Ball provides exercise, development, and rehabilitation of injured players; the Strength Shoe (Strength Footwear, Metairie, Louisiana), a sneaker with a platform mounted on the bottom front, was developed to increase speed and quickness and improve vertical jump. Bill Raferty, broadcaster for ESPN, CBS, and Sports Channel, began Bill Raferty's Broadcasting School for those wishing to break into the electronic media. The litany goes on and on. Clearly, the entrepreneurial penchant of Americans, combined with their love of sports, yields an impressive array of business successes.
Perhaps this American spirit is best exemplified by NFL Films. In 1962, Ed Sabol took a number of risks. First, he submitted a$5,000 bid to the National Football League (NFL)-double the successful bid of the previous season-for the right to film the championship game. Second, he won the right and then filmed the game differently; previously, one camera stationed in the stands high above the fifty yard line would capture the entire game. Sabol utilized several cameras around the stadium; one filmed entirely in slow motion. The result: "Pro Football's Longest Day." Former Commissioner Pete Rozelle's verdict: the greatest football film he had ever seen. Following a few years of adjustment, Sabol's company-NFL Films-emerged, transforming the way the world looked at professional football. Eventually the multimillion dollar award winning organization found itself on the cutting edge of film technology, business organization, and public relations-to the visual and audio delight of fans worldwide.
Product Development
As with any business enterprise, product development often takes years. Mike Hall developed the "Determinator" a sophisticated pitching machine. Taking five years in development, HalPs device marries television and batting practice. A video of the pitcher (any pitcher) appears on the screen approximately 55 feet away, and at the appropriate moment, the ball is delivered through an opening. Hall believes his machine will revolutionize batting practice, as it closely approximates game conditions.
Hall came up with the idea for his invention following a dream. "I figure you get only one great idea in a lifetime," suggested the entrepreneur. As president of Video Baseball of America in Roswell, Georgia, he placed a machine in use at Fulton County Stadium for the Atlanta Braves. "The entire concept and idea is tremendous," stated Braves General Manager Bobby Cox.
Distribution
Not all sports entrepreneurs develop and manufacture a product. Some focus upon distribution. The candy bars endorsed and named for professional players quickly come to mind. Perhaps a better example is Thera Kinetics of Mt. Laurel, New Jersey. This organization assisted Tony Dorsett, Tim Kerr, John Elway, and other athletes and the general public with its CPM device. This machine provides continuous passive motion (CPM) to an injured or recently surgically repaired body part. Present thinking among orthopedic physicians in many cases calls for movement of the ailing limb as soon as possible following a medical procedure. Patients strapped to CPM move and exercise their limbs-recovery time is shortened. Jerold Zebrick, owner and president, has leased the high tech equipment to hospitals, sports medicine rehabilitation centers, and individuals. The devices must be utilized under the supervision of a physician and the direction of a physical therapist or related health personnel. In commenting on the success of marketing his equipment to the sports world, Zebrick stated, "These guys are worth millions of dollars to their teams, and when they go down, the object is to get them back and playing as fast as possible." Fortunately for companies such as Thera Kinetics, even most non athletes want to return to normal activities as soon as possible following an injury.
Reading Materials
The publics hunger for sports related news has allowed a variety of newsletters, magazines, and other publications to flourish. Some examples are:
- Regional and local publications covering sports news in a given geographical area
- Newsletters and magazines supporting a single university's spirits teams, or a professional sports franchise
- Magazines and newsletters focusing on a single sport, such as wrestling or baseball
The growth of the Internet is also opening up publishing opportunities related to sports. For example, Cloverleaf Golf Publications of White Salmon, Washington, produces a series of books on golf which can be down loaded from the Internet by interested customers. Newsletters and other publications can also be produced and marketed on line. If you want to start your own sports publication, this is one approach. An advantage is you can save on printing and mailing costs.
Rest it seem too easy, fun, lucrative, and glamorous to own your own sports related company, as you mingle with and interview athletes and others from the sports world, heed the words of basketball yearbook guru Mike Moriarty: "It's not that easy to make money; the business side is difficult, and competition is hell. I spend most of my time on the non glamorous end of the business. "Moriarty started out by publishing the Big East Year book on apart time basis. The University of Missouri grad then expanded his enterprise and began publishing The ACC Yearbook, The Big Ten Yearbook, and The Big Eight Yearbook.
"Sports is something that appeals to everyone; friends are envious! However, if all I had to do is to watch games and edit stories, this [job] would be a blast. This is not an easy area to make money," Moriarty said.
The opportunities for entrepreneurship exist. Carefully choose a special niche, work like hell, and enjoy life as a sport entrepreneur. With any luck, financial success soon will follow.
Before starting a sports related business, be sure to do your homework. Bookstores and libraries offer scores of books on starting and running your own business, and the local office of the U.S. Small Business Administration is a great resource (see your phone directory for the nearest office).
