you’re approaching a lighthouse.”
The off-field appearance is part of a brand-new advertisement for the e-commerce eyewear platform Zenni which features Ortiz wearing prescription sunglasses warning a fishing boat 30 miles off the coast of a collision.
“Retirement?” he says when the action is frozen. “Not for Papi.”
Ortiz 46 who was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in January and will be inducted at the 2022 celebration later in the month, shared his thoughts about his life after the game in an interview video for Forbes.
The former All-Star has remained active in Boston in which Ortiz appears for the Red Sox, and in baseball in general in his role as an analyst with Fox Sports. He also co-founded a private equity company that invests in consumer products and has launched Ortiz34, a baseball-related brand of equipment for children and is also one of the endorsers for athletes of the crypto-based platform FTX.
“I like to stay busy,” Ortiz states. “I do not like sitting for long periods of time. … It’s probably the way that you develop as a player of baseball.”
Ortiz played in major leagues for more than 20 years, and hit 541 career home runs, which ranks 17th in all-time while making over $160 million in the field as per Spotrac. Spotrac is the website which analyzes sports contracts. He spoke with Forbes from his home in the Dominican Republic as he prepares to launch a brand-new eyewear line in partnership together with Zenni within an new agreement with Zenni.
“I made sure they had prices that people can approach.”
Business With ‘Big Papi’
Zenni was launched in 2003. Zenni is a service for the online market for eyewear. Zenni told Forbes it made around $400 million by 2021. This would represent an increase from the three million total revenues in 2020 and $250 million in the previous year according to Pitchbook.
The company joined forces with Ortiz in the past year through an endorsement agreement. The terms of the endorsement aren’t disclosed, but Ortiz has no any equity. The company is based in California and is part of a global market for eyewear that is which is expected to reach $197 billion in 2027, according to market research company Statista.
The July 11 campaign starring Ortiz named “PapiVision: Lighthouse,” is a follow-up to the August 2021commercial which starred Ortiz as a food inspector. Ortiz wears glasses to spot a problem in the clam chowder dishes. The commercial was is amused Red Sox and Fenway Sports Group owner John Henriy.
“When he first saw it,” says Ortiz, “(Henry) texted me immediately. He was laughing.”
In his 14-year tenure as a player for The Red Sox, Ortiz won three World Series championships, was selected to 10 All-Star teams, and he topped in the American League in 2006 with 54 home runs, which was a record for a career. He was able to secure endorsements from Coca-Cola, JetBlue, Mastercard and the sports apparel brand New Balance, and in his final season as an athlete, in the year 2016, Forbes estimated Ortiz was earning six million dollars through endorsements. This figure will rank as the third highest of baseball by 2022.
“My personality,” says Ortiz, “has brought attention to a variety of businesses. Yet the secret to having numerous companies is the effort you put into it.” He continues: “I want my personality to shine. I’m willing to offer you the fullness of who I’m.”
In the year 2016, Ortiz joined former MLB players such as Nolan Ryan, Vernon Wells, Barry Larkin and Torii Hunter to establish Dugout Ventures, an Austin-based private equity firm which invests in consumer-product businesses. The company initially raised $10 million according to The Wall Street Journal.
“I’m all over the place,” Ortiz states of his portfolio of business ventures.
Dugout owns a stake Performance Kitchen, an e-commerce food delivery service which sells nutritious meals to insurance companies and has collected $81 million as of today which includes $12.3 millions in 2018, which came from Dugout According to Pitchbook. New York Yankees legend Derek Jeter is an angel investor in Performance Kitchen.
In the year 2020, Dugout sold its stake in Marucci Sports in a deal that valued the manufacturing firm at $200 million. Ortiz is director at the PE firm, highlighted authenticity as an important factor in evaluating companies that can provide capital.
“Your product,” Ortiz states, “has to be legit. I’m not one to get behind a product that’s fake.”
Ortiz Says Crypto Will Bounce Back
The Hall of Fame ceremony is quickly approaching the Hall of Fame ceremony is fast approaching, and Ortiz admits that he’s anxious. Ortiz does not like the additional commotion that comes due to the honour. There’s an abundance of demands from relatives members, acquaintances, “anybody that knows you and wants to come see you.” But, Ortiz plans to cherish the moment as “it’s something that’s not happening every day. It’s not the case for everyone.”
The pressure isn’t a hindrance to Ortiz’s optimism. He believes in the cryptocurrency market, which is currently in the process of being panned out.
