Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers is known for a lot of things: football superstar, thrower of touchdowns, Super Bowl Winner, MVP, that Discount Double Check guy.
Now he has another distinction to add to his name: Aaron Rodgers, venture capitalist.
Rx3 Ventures, an investment firm that Rodgers co-founded with Nate Raabe and Byron Roth, announced today the launch of its $50 million growth fund. Based out of LA, the firm plans to invest in growth-stage consumer companies.
We are in a unique position to help drive positive outcomes for companies, particularly consumer brands.”
An athlete’s role is no longer limited to the field. Star players are often flooded with investment opportunities and brands hoping to profit from their popularity.
For Rodgers, whose title at the firm is general partner, Rx3 allows him to step out of the pocket and into the world of startups.
“With more and more access to deal flow, it’s hard for any athlete or high-profile individual to adequately evaluate each opportunity,” Rodgers said in a statement. “We are in a unique position to help drive positive outcomes for companies, particularly consumer brands, but the relationship needs to be authentic.”
For Rx3, Rodgers’ popularity as an athlete and his business acumen give the firm access to deals it would otherwise not get, Managing Partner Nate Raabe told Built In. Meanwhile, the firm’s connections to a deep bench of athletes, musicians, actors and influencers, means it can offer brands something beyond money — influence.
The key is that those connections are authentic and that the stakeholder, be it an athlete, musician or other public person, cares about the brand’s long term success, Raabe said.
Raabe pointed to Rodgers and other NFL players’ wearing helmets made by VICIS — one of Rx3’s portfolio companies — as an example. They don’t do it for the sponsorship, he said, but because they believe in the company’s product and mission to build the safest football helmet.
“We don’t require influencers to put their name on a brand, but if an athlete has an authentic relationship with them, we can provide value to them,” Raabe told Built In.
Meanwhile, Raabe and Roth bring skills and resources from their time at ROTH Capital Partners So far, Rx3’s portolio includes CorePower Yoga, Privé Revaux and Hydrow. With this fund, Raabe said the company will look to invest between $1 million and $3 million in each deal.
.png)
