Deal Brief · Week of Sep 21
Tracking the deals shaping the business of culture.
Investments
LeBron James invests in birria chain Mike’s Red Tacos
James backed the fast-growing Southern California birria concept as it prepares to open its first LA-area location in Pasadena. The deal reunites a familiar group: chairman Bill Phelps co-founded Wetzel’s Pretzels, was a founding investor in Blaze Pizza (which James backed in 2012 at ~10 locations), and led Dave’s Hot Chicken, where James invested again.
Rich Paul leads an athlete round into Beekeeper Coffee
The Klutch Sports founder led a star-studded round into the ready-to-drink brand, bringing in Draymond Green, Anthony Davis, Zach LaVine, Fred VanVleet, De’Aaron Fox, Jared Goff, and golfer Min Woo Lee. The round landed alongside a nationwide Target debut; Beekeeper already sits in Erewhon, Wegmans, and Gopuff.
Markiplier becomes GoPro’s largest shareholder with an 8.5% stake
Mark Fischbach disclosed 13.5M shares of GoPro — an 8.5% stake worth roughly $9.3M — making him the company’s single largest shareholder. He filed as a passive investor, with plain reasoning: the stock looked undervalued and he wants the company to survive.
Flau’jae Johnson expands her real estate portfolio with another 15 acres
The LSU star added 15 acres for an upcoming commercial project, building on 20 acres she bought in Georgia while still in college.
New ventures
Chris Paul launches an athlete-led media company with Genius Sports
Paul launched an athlete-led media company — a JV between his Ohh Dip!!! Entertainment and Schell’s Words + Pictures, with Genius Sports as exclusive commercialization partner. Schell produced The Last Dance; Genius brings AI-powered tracking data across 1,000-plus sports organizations.
Malik Davis launches microdrama studio Upscale
Davis launched Upscale Media Films as a full-service microdrama producer built to own the pipeline end to end. It’s already making vertical shows with Kevin Hart’s Hartbeat.
Vivian Tu launches finance app Ask Dolly
The creator known as “Your Rich BFF” brought her finance app out of beta — customized markets news and financial guidance in her signature voice, aimed at making financial education accessible to underserved communities.
Amy Chang launches medical-aesthetics practice Matera
The beauty creator opened a self-funded, 2,000-square-foot “slow beauty” practice in Santa Monica, built around a no-commission model — providers paid 20–25% above market regardless of volume, to remove the pressure to upsell. It projects seven-figure first-year revenue.
Joshua Weissman opens his first restaurant, Ben & Lynn’s
The YouTube chef opened a fried-chicken restaurant in a restored 1920s bungalow in East Austin, counter-service, built around a signature sandwich and honey-dipped chicken.
Fernando Mendoza launches “Finance with Fernando” with U.S. Bank
The Raiders quarterback launched an educational video series with U.S. Bank as its “Chief Financial Playmaker,” pitched as a practical guide for Gen Z.
Fundraising and acquisitions
Howard Schultz joins Pivot25 Productions as investor and strategic partner
The former Starbucks CEO came on as investor and strategic partner at Pivot25, the company Ryan Clark co-founded. Schultz reached out after Clark’s July ESPN departure and pushed him to think beyond a single show; Pivot25 recently secured a multi-year Netflix deal for The Pivot.
Brand endorsements
On Enters Football with Kylian Mbappé and Thierry Henry
Kylian Mbappé has ended a Nike relationship dating to 2006 and signed with On as the Swiss brand launches its football division. Thierry Henry is On’s new Director of Football. The agreement includes cash and equity, giving Mbappé a financial stake in the company.
Baker Mayfield launches a collection with Every Man Jack
Every Man Jack has launched its first-ever co-created collection with Baker Mayfield, out now exclusively at Target stores and Target.com. Mayfield started as an ambassador, ran the Sweat Equity campaign with the brand, and has now moved into product — selecting the scents and shaping the story behind them.
Brooks Running signs Cooper Kupp, Maddy Westbeld, and Oscar Bobb
Brooks added the NFL receiver, WNBA forward, and Premier League footballer to its global ambassador roster across storytelling and content initiatives.
Chime signs Jaxson Dart to a multi-year partnership
Chime has signed Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart to a multi-year partnership spanning national advertising, original content, social fan experiences and financial education. Dart has worked with Chime earlier this year on Compound Combine, the company’s nationwide financial education series.
Malachi Toney signs an NIL deal with adidas
The Miami receiver joined adidas Football’s roster alongside Patrick Mahomes and Travis Hunter, deepening the brand’s Hurricanes ties. His NIL slate already includes Hellstar and Leaf Trading Cards.
Belinda Bencic joins Golden Goose as brand ambassador
The Swiss tennis star — Olympic singles gold medalist and 2025 Wimbledon semifinalist — becomes a global ambassador for the 2026–27 season, launching with an off-court, city-based campaign.
Sol de Janeiro signs Trinity Rodman and Tara Rudd
The body-care brand extended a Washington Spirit partnership into individual deals with the two USWNT players, who’ll represent its Brazilian Bum Bum Cream and Cheirosa line.
Camila Cabello is Tommy Hilfiger’s newest global ambassador
Cabello fronts Freedom Eau de Parfum — Tommy Hilfiger’s first major women’s fragrance launch in over a decade.
TXT’s Soobin named a Dolce&Gabbana global ambassador
The luxury house named Soobin a global ambassador, his first formal brand ambassadorship, after he attended its Spring/Summer men’s show in Milan.
Media deals
Alicia Keys and Swizz Beatz launch an artist resale royalty program with Bonhams
The Dean Collection is launching a resale royalty program with Bonhams — sellers can allocate a share of proceeds to the artist, and Bonhams matches it. Built to give living artists a stake in the secondary market, it’s billed as the first art-auction royalty mechanism of its kind in the US.
Roles and appointments
Chris Paul joins Owl Ventures as venture partner
Beyond his new media company, Paul joined the education-and-workforce VC firm as a venture partner, supporting founders across a platform with $2.2B-plus in committed capital and 100-plus investments.
Dee Brown joins Zawyer Sports & Entertainment as VP of basketball operations
The former NBA player was named VP of basketball operations at Zawyer, expanding from a prior consulting role as the league builds toward its 2027 season.
José Calderón named assistant GM of the Cleveland Cavaliers
Cleveland promoted Calderón to assistant general manager. He joined the Cavs as a special advisor in 2022 after NBPA work following his 14-year playing career.
The Beekeeper Coffee round is the one worth studying. Rich Paul didn't just invest, he brought seven other athletes with him, and the round landed right alongside a Target rollout. That's not a celebrity co-sign, that's a distribution network showing up at the exact moment the brand needed shelf space. LeBron doing the same thing with Mike's Red Tacos, reusing the same operator group from Blaze Pizza and Dave's Hot Chicken, tells you the real skill isn't picking one good brand. It's building a repeatable process for spotting food concepts early and having the network ready to back them every time.
I don’t know how I feel about On moving into football. Let’s see how things evolve…