The Players Trunk on Shark Tank: Background story, cost and all about the business with five co-founders

The finale of Shark Tank Season 13 is set to feature four businesses, including The Players Trunk. Founded by five friends, namely Jason Lansing, Hunter Pomerantz, Austin Pomerantz, Charles Matthews, and Zavier Simpson, the company helps former college athletes sell their sports gear online.

Matthews and Simpson were college athletes. The former suffered an injury during his NBA tryouts and Simpson failed to sell his sports uniforms, so the five decided to form the company together.

The company’s website description reads:

“The Players Trunk is a platform for former college athletes to capitalize on the gear they earned during the duration of their college career.”

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Meet the founders of The Players Trunk

The five founders of The Players Trunk are all associated with sports, especially basketball. They have recently graduated from college.

Janson Lansing majored in Sports Management from the University of Michigan (2021). He was appointed manager for the men’s basketball team and served in that role for four years. Hunter Pomerantz is a fresh graduate from Syracuse University where he pursued a degree in Sports Management and Business Marketing. He was the head manager of the men’s basketball team. Austin Pomerantz is a sports enthusiast who grew up in New York, and he recently graduated with a degree in Sports Management. These young entrepreneurs gained valuable lessons in sports and business over the course of their education.

The other two co-founders, Charles Matthews and Zavier Simpson, are basketball players who have experienced the rush of the game.

Matthews, a Chicago boy, played his freshman year in Kentucky before transferring to the University of Michigan. The 2020 graduate helped his Michigan team reach the 2018 NCAA Championship Game.

Simpson, on the other hand, is on his way to becoming a professional basketball player. He rose to fame at the University of Michigan because of his amazing talent. His hook-shots were excellent and he was hence popularly known as Captain Hook in college.

The five college graduates have launched this new platform together for former athletes and current sportspeople who want to sell their old gear.

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How does it work and what is the cost?

Interested buyers can go to the website of The Players Trunk and browse products by school, team or athlete. The products are usually available in multiple sizes and and not limited to just basketball. The catalogue features everything from autographed jerseys to custom merchandise and practice gears. Bag balls, gloves, hats, jerseys and outerwear are among the other products available for sale.

The price range starts from $10 for signed cards and goes up to even $8,000 for shoes.

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Four founders will appear on Shark Tank

All five The Players Trunk founders will not appear on the Shark Tank Season 13 finale. Hunter Pomerantz, Charles Matthews, Jason Lansing and Austin Pomerantz will present their pitch during Episode 24 of the show, to be aired on Friday, May 20 at 8.00 PM ET on ABC.

The description of the company, as mentioned in the official synopsis of Shark Tank’s upcoming episode, reads:

“Former college students from Chicago, Illinois, pitch their online marketplace designed to help current and past college athletes cash in on their fame.”

Apart from The Players Trunk, the Shark Tank finale will introduce three more businesses — Aqua Boxing Glove, The Transformation Factory, and Project Pollo.

Actor Kevin Hart will join the show as a guest judge alongside regular sharks Barbara Corcoran, Kevin O’Leary, Mark Cuban, and Lori Greiner.