Daymond John
As one of the industry’s most recognized branding experts, Daymond John’s own brand has seen an aggressive expansion since he created FUBU more than 20 years ago. An original cast member of the four-time Emmy® Award-winning series “Shark Tank,” John’s relentless commitment to promoting and supporting entrepreneurs led to him becoming a two-time New York Times bestselling author for his books “The Power of Broke” (2016) and “Rise and Grind” (2018), which was also recognized as a Wall Street Journal Best Seller. In March 2023, John released his first children’s book, “Little Daymond Learns to Earn,” which instantly became a New York Times Bestseller, No. 1 on Amazon Books, and a Wallstreet Journal Best Seller. “Little Daymond Learns to Earn” draws on Daymond’s business acumen and personal experience to ignite kids’ early interest in and understanding of how money works − saving, spending, budgeting, and borrowing – to develop a basic foundation of financial literacy that will set children up for success in the future.
His dedication to supporting entrepreneurs led him to create the four-time Webby Award-winning livestream event, Black Entrepreneurs Day. The fourth annual event will take place in October at the historic Apollo Theater in Harlem and feature a star-studded lineup with some of Hollywood’s most prominent Black celebrities as they share their personal journeys and path to success in a format designed to empower and educate.
With a passion to motivate and connect with his social media community of over 5 million, John recently won an AdWeek Creative Visionary Award as Business Advice Creator of the Year and was named a Top Voice by LinkedIn in 2020. In 2016, he landed the distinguished honor of serving as a Presidential Ambassador for Global Entrepreneurship under the Obama administration where he traveled with the then-president to Kenya and Cuba to help grow entrepreneurship and small business opportunities.
John continues to serve as the CEO of The Shark Group—his consulting firm, comprised of a team of expert communicators, strategic analysts and creative heavyweights that excel in transforming businesses into iconic brands through brand strategy, product development, influencer marketing, speaking and digital media.
John currently sits on the board of the Petco Foundation, the UTSA Foundation, and the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship, is the National Brand Ambassador for the American Cancer Society and remains an ambassador for Global Citizen and the Global Poverty Project.
PERSONAL INFORMATION
HOMETOWN: Hollis, Queens, New York
BIRTHDATE: February 23
