University of Houston athlete Ramon Walker Jr. is putting his name, image, likeness (NIL) earnings to good use.
Walker Jr. has secured a slew of partnerships while playing for the college. According to his Instagram, they include Star Pizza, Daspit Law Firm, Gallery Furniture, The Players Trunk, and BB’s Tex-Orleans. Also listed is Actively Black, a Black-owned apparel brand launched in 2020 by Lanny Smith, as AFROTECH™ previously reported.
With his earnings, he wants to invest in real estate thanks to his father’s advice, whom he views as a mentor.
“My dad always told me, he says, when you have money, you have to let your money make you more money,” Walker explained per PaperCity Magazine. “Just my dad being a mentor to me on that side of things has really helped me. The NIL landscape is crazy now. It’s a huge influx of money. So I’m just trying to do the right things with it to set myself up for later in life, that’s something I’ve been concentrating on.”
Walker has also been picking the brains of the team’s assistant coach, Kellen Sampson, to gauge what he should add to his portfolio.
“I’ve been talking to Coach Kellen on all of it,” Walker said per PaperCity Magazine. “He’s referred me to a lot of people that are helping me get started with that. I’ve really been getting into commercial (real estate) because I just feel like there’s a lot of revenue that comes with that.”
Walker aspires to contribute to the city of Houston in ways that will go beyond sports, and real estate could be a perfect gateway to be more impactful.
“Quite a few guys have found some things they’d like to explore,” Sampson told PaperCity Magazine. “Whether it’s with investments. Whether it’s with unique career opportunities. This is the first real estate. And I know this, as much as that kid has worn this uniform with the pride and honor of a true Houstonian, I know the city of Houston is going to do right by Ramon here in his next chapter,” Sampson expressed.
