It’s not for entertainment.
It’s not for late-night cravings.
Ricky Jean Francois says he owns 25 Dunkin’ Donuts franchises, and his reason is for the long haul.
The new Packers defensive tackle signed a one-year, $2 million contract last week. Fair to say, he won’t dump all those funds into a million-dollar sports car and clothes. Jean Francois has made investing a priority in his NFL career, applying the focus into a business strategy that so happens to make him something of a doughnut-and-coffee tycoon.
Jean Francois said that he wasn’t as conscientious with his money in 2009 as a 49ers rookie.
But as the NFL paychecks grew, his attention did, too.
“When the big money came in,” Jean Francois said, via Fox Sports Radio, “I was like, ‘I need a retirement plan right now. I need a retirement plan that can grow right now, so at the time when I actually walk out of the NFL, I don’t have to let the NFL be my identity. Teams can look at me like, ‘OK, he’s a business man. He’s a smart guy. He knows what he’s doing with his money.’
“I’m going on year nine, and I have so many different investments and opportunities, so the day I have to walk out of the league, I won’t have those second guesses. I won’t be those guys you see on ’30-for-30.’ I won’t be those percentage of guys that goes broke. . . . I want to be that guy on top. When the league talks about, ‘This is what you do with your money,’ they actually show a picture of me.”
Between the March free-agency period and rookie contract signings to come, Jean Francois’ example is a timely one.