WALNUT CREEK, CA - Pivot Agency, the sports marketing and sales firm run by former Golden State Warriors executive Ben Shapiro, has bolstered its board of investors with a goal of raising $20 million.
The agency, based in the San Francisco suburb of Walnut Creek, has added National Football League Hall of Fame defensive back Ronnie Lott to its top ranks.
Lott will join Pivot’s board alongside Bret Hedican, a two-time US Olympian and former professional ice hockey player; Steve Miller, previously a Nike Inc. marketing executive and former chief executive officer at the Professional Bowlers Association; Karen O’Brien, a digital marketing executive; and Larry Scott, the former commissioner for the collegiate PAC-12 conference.
“The new board of investors is the first step to bringing in outside capital,” Shapiro said in an interview. The group joins existing board member Joe Saunders, who was the chief executive officer of Visa Inc.
Founded in 2013, Pivot is a full-service marketing agency with a focus on brand integration in the sports sector. It also operates a travel division, Pivot Travel, serving sports organizations from youth programs to professional leagues.
Shapiro said Pivot’s current and former clients include the Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Clippers, Brooklyn Nets and San Antonio Spurs, plus the exhibition baseball team Savannah Bananas and multiple Nascar crews.
Pivot began raising capital passively in 2021, Shapiro said. Those efforts ramped up in the past sixth months with all of the board of investors contributing significant capital, and the agency has now raised 10% of its $20 million goal, he said.
Four-time Super Bowl champion Lott has seen the drastic expansion in sports since he joined the San Francisco 49ers in 1981, the beginning of a 14-season NFL career. He said he wanted in on Pivot.
“The opportunity to join their board of investors was unique and something I couldn’t pass up given the quality of their current portfolio of clients and projected growth,” Lott told Bloomberg News. “I’ve seen the sports marketplace continue to grow since my playing days, and this is another way for me to get involved with that growth.”
Lott added, “I’ve known Ben and Pivot for several years now and I really believe in what they’re building.”
