Instead Of Going Broke Like Most Retired NBA Players, Junior Bridgeman Built A $400 Million Fast Food Empire
Pop quiz #1: In 1975, which newly drafted player did the Lakers trade away to acquire superstar Kareem Abdul-Jabbar? If you guessed Junior Bridgeman, you are correct.
Pop quiz #2: As of April 2014, who is the second largest owner of Wendy's franchises in America? Once again, the correct answer is… Junior Bridgeman. As an NBA player, Junior Bridgeman had a moderately successful 12-year career playing for the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Clippers. To be completely honest, his NBA career was kind of unremarkable. And as you may know, retirement can be a very painful experience for many NBA players. According to a study conducted by Sports Illustrated, a staggering 60% of NBA players are completely broke within five years of retiring. Junior Bridgeman did not go down this route.
In his 12-year NBA career (10 with Milwaukee, two with the Clippers), Bridgeman was mostly a sixth man. For nine consecutive seasons he averaged double figures in scoring. He holds the Milwaukee franchise record for number of games played at 711, though he only started in 105 of those games.
Bridgeman was a good basketball player, solid and steady. His professional career lasted from 1975 to 1987, in the era just before players were paid crazy amounts of money. Players like Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson made the bulk of their money from endorsement deals, but still made a lot of money in the NBA – close to $100 million for Jordan. Bridgeman never saw anywhere close to that kind of money during his NBA days. His peak salary was $350,000 from the Clippers in 1985.
Unlike most athletes, Junior was quick to realize that his window of time in the NBA would be relatively short. At some point the paychecks would stop coming in and he would need to find a new source of steady income. So, on a whim, Junior decided to purchase a franchise of his favorite fast food restaurant: Wendy's. While other NBA players hung out during the off season doing God knows what, Bridgeman was working in local Wendy's—learning his burgeoning business from every angle and building a foundation for the rest of his and his family's lives. By the time his playing days were over, Junior owned three Wendy's.
Over the next few years, Junior slowly expanded Bridgeman Foods INC. Three locations grew to six. Six grew to ten. Ten grew to twenty and so on. Business boomed thanks largely to Junior's highly dedicated work ethic. Instead of sitting back and collecting checks from a beach in the Bahamas, Junior was frequently seen behind the counters working at his own restaurants.
Here's an amazing anecdote: One day, a customer recognized Junior in his Wendy's uniform making french fries. The customer was shocked and immediately called into a local sports talk radio show to say how sad it was to see a formerly great NBA player down on his luck, forced to work in fast food asking people "do you want fries with that?"
After nearly 25 years in business, Bridgeman Foods INC operates more than 160 Wendy's and more than 120 Chili's franchises in America today. Bridgeman employs over 11,000 people and has annual revenues in excess of $530 million dollars. Possibly looking to follow Junior's lead, current NBA player Chauncey Billups recently invested money into some Wendy's franchises. Junior is the second largest Wendy's franchise owner in the world and frequently listed as one of the most admired business leaders in America. His personal net worth today tops $400 million. That's just $250 million shy of Michael Jordan. That's also $380 million MORE than Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's current net worth of $20 million.
When not running his fast food empire, Junior Bridgeman likes to play golf and, in fact, is on the board of directors of the PGA. He has been married to his wife Doris for more than 35 years. The couple has three adult children who all have MBAs and work in the family business. Junior Bridgeman is a private man who has built a heck of a fortune, family, and life. He recognized a problem and turned it into an opportunity. Thanks to a lot of hard work, that opportunity made him an extremely wealthy and admired man.
Pop quiz #1: In 1975, which newly drafted player did the Lakers trade away to acquire superstar Kareem Abdul-Jabbar? If you guessed Junior Bridgeman, you are correct.
Pop quiz #2: As of April 2014, who is the second largest owner of Wendy's franchises in America? Once again, the correct answer is… Junior Bridgeman. As an NBA player, Junior Bridgeman had a moderately successful 12-year career playing for the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Clippers. To be completely honest, his NBA career was kind of unremarkable. And as you may know, retirement can be a very painful experience for many NBA players. According to a study conducted by Sports Illustrated, a staggering 60% of NBA players are completely broke within five years of retiring. Junior Bridgeman did not go down this route.
In his 12-year NBA career (10 with Milwaukee, two with the Clippers), Bridgeman was mostly a sixth man. For nine consecutive seasons he averaged double figures in scoring. He holds the Milwaukee franchise record for number of games played at 711, though he only started in 105 of those games.
Bridgeman was a good basketball player, solid and steady. His professional career lasted from 1975 to 1987, in the era just before players were paid crazy amounts of money. Players like Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson made the bulk of their money from endorsement deals, but still made a lot of money in the NBA – close to $100 million for Jordan. Bridgeman never saw anywhere close to that kind of money during his NBA days. His peak salary was $350,000 from the Clippers in 1985.
Unlike most athletes, Junior was quick to realize that his window of time in the NBA would be relatively short. At some point the paychecks would stop coming in and he would need to find a new source of steady income. So, on a whim, Junior decided to purchase a franchise of his favorite fast food restaurant: Wendy's. While other NBA players hung out during the off season doing God knows what, Bridgeman was working in local Wendy's—learning his burgeoning business from every angle and building a foundation for the rest of his and his family's lives. By the time his playing days were over, Junior owned three Wendy's.
Over the next few years, Junior slowly expanded Bridgeman Foods INC. Three locations grew to six. Six grew to ten. Ten grew to twenty and so on. Business boomed thanks largely to Junior's highly dedicated work ethic. Instead of sitting back and collecting checks from a beach in the Bahamas, Junior was frequently seen behind the counters working at his own restaurants.
Here's an amazing anecdote: One day, a customer recognized Junior in his Wendy's uniform making french fries. The customer was shocked and immediately called into a local sports talk radio show to say how sad it was to see a formerly great NBA player down on his luck, forced to work in fast food asking people "do you want fries with that?"
After nearly 25 years in business, Bridgeman Foods INC operates more than 160 Wendy's and more than 120 Chili's franchises in America today. Bridgeman employs over 11,000 people and has annual revenues in excess of $530 million dollars. Possibly looking to follow Junior's lead, current NBA player Chauncey Billups recently invested money into some Wendy's franchises. Junior is the second largest Wendy's franchise owner in the world and frequently listed as one of the most admired business leaders in America. His personal net worth today tops $400 million. That's just $250 million shy of Michael Jordan. That's also $380 million MORE than Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's current net worth of $20 million.
When not running his fast food empire, Junior Bridgeman likes to play golf and, in fact, is on the board of directors of the PGA. He has been married to his wife Doris for more than 35 years. The couple has three adult children who all have MBAs and work in the family business. Junior Bridgeman is a private man who has built a heck of a fortune, family, and life. He recognized a problem and turned it into an opportunity. Thanks to a lot of hard work, that opportunity made him an extremely wealthy and admired man.
He apparently had no game. Lucky he knew a little bit about business.
