What to know
- Shaq has leveraged his fame into major brand deals like Shaq-a-licious XL gummies with Hersheyland, while also prioritizing affordability and access by partnering with Walmart to create stylish, high-quality shoes priced around $20 for families.
- Giving back is central to his legacy, with The Shaquille O’Neal Foundation donating over $320,000 to U.S. public schools for sports programs and his Shaq-to-School initiative providing supplies to thousands of students facing socioeconomic challenges.
- Beyond business, Shaq remains a major entertainment figure as an actor, DJ (DJ Diesel), music producer, and podcast host, while investing in companies such as Lyft (pre-IPO), Google, Apple, Papa John’s, and Krispy Kreme.
Shaquille O’Neal might’ve retired from basketball, but his hustle is definitely still going.
The 53-year-old retired from the NBA in 2011, and has since ventured into many pursuits.
From brand partnerships and entertainment to investing and owning businesses – including recently expanding Big Chicken into Canada – his dozens of endeavours are leaving him a legacy beyond basketball. In an Earn Your Leisure YouTube interview back in 2022, Shaq shared that he owned businesses from about 50 brands.
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We compiled a list of some of the big brands that Shaq is behind, and some of them might surprise you.
Shaq-a-licious Brand Partnerships
With his fame, Shaq scored quite a few brand partnerships, including Shaq-a-licious XL gummies with Hersheyland.
The gummies include four variations, from slams with mango hoops, sneaker-shaped, original with his famous grin, and super sour gummies shaped like his nicknames, such as Diesel (pineapple flavoured), The Big Cactus (mixed berry flavoured), and The Big Shamrock (green watermelon).
He’s also been a spokesperson and brand ambassador for Epson printers since 2019, promoting their EcoTank line of cartridge-free printers.
Shaq serving underserved youth
A mother told him his shoes were too expensive for her children, so Shaq decided to reject a $40-million brand partnership with Reebok to partner with Walmart (hiring designers who had worked with Reebok to maintain style and quality) to create affordable “Shaq” shoes starting at around $20. As a result, hundreds of millions of quality pairs are made accessible to families.
He also founded The Shaquille O’Neal Foundation, where he’s already given over $320,000 in funding to 23 public schools in the U.S. for sports. With that, they can afford to buy gear, provide transportation services, PPE equipment and more as part of the Get Game Ready grant program.
In that same field, he runs the Shaq-to-School program, which provides basic school supplies to kids facing socioeconomic challenges.
Thousands of kids have benefited from this program since 2019, and even received a surprise visit from Shaquille himself.
He greatly values education, holding a Bachelor of Science in General Studies, an MBA, and a Doctor of Education in Organizational Learning and Leadership with a specialization in human resource development, which explains his active support for educational initiatives and him famously paying for 15 of his friends to obtain Master’s degrees.
Shaq in his entertainment era
From acting gigs to DJ-ing, singing, podcasting, and hosting, Shaq stays relevant in the entertainment industry.
He has appeared in films like Blue Chips, playing a college basketball player (fitting), Kazaam as a genie, Steel as the main character fighting evil, and Scary Movie 4.
You might also recognize his voice representing his own lego in The Lego Movie.
Shaq also had an eight-episode reality show posted on Facebook about his Big Chicken business when it first opened.
He’s also an active DJ under the name DJ Diesel, with sets focused on EDM, particularly dubstep and trap.
Shaq frequently headlined major music festivals and events, including Tomorrowland and Lollapalooza. His next event is Shaq’s Bass All-Stars Festival in March in Texas, U.S.
In addition to his DJ journey, he has also released five studio albums, two compilation albums, and numerous singles.
He’s also a podcast personality on TNT’s Inside the NBA until May 2025, winning an Emmy for his work, and is currently a co-host of The Big Podcast. Topics include NBA news, pop culture, and special guest interviews.
Investing big money into businesses
Shaq has invested in dozens of businesses, including Lyft in 2013 before it went public, Google, Apple, Pepsi, Papa John’s, and Krispy Kreme (his favourite place to get doughnuts). He also used to own around 40 24-Hour fitness centres, but recently sold them to venture into other businesses. Now, he shows an evident interest in food, expanding his Big Chicken business into Canada with its first location in Hamilton’s TD Coliseum.
