A brand-name celebrity's endorsement may not guarantee success for a new business. Then again, it sure doesn't hurt. Here are 10 startups with real star power behind them.
Consiglieri
Steve Nash The future Hall of Fame point guard knows how to diversify his portfolio. Besides his production company, sports club and charitable foundation, Nash announced in August he is now aiming to launch Consiglieri, a marketing consultancy and venture capital firm targeting the e-commerce, sports and consumer durables sectors. Consiglieri's backers thus far include Zig Capital and Deutsch Inc. Nash hopes to raise a total war chest of $20 million.
WeMix
Ludacris
Take emerging artists, add a dash of music-mashing, stir in some rap mogul and spread evenly on social media platform. The result: WeMix music network, a 2007 media venture headed by three-time Grammy Award-winning rapper Ludacris and MegaMobile TV founder Chris Apfel. Members of this online community are given the tools to collaborate on beats and encouraged to share ideas with other members. Top-notch performers stand a chance to spit some rhymes with Luda himself.
WePlay
Derek Jeter, LeBron James, Peyton Manning
The youth-sports networking site has an all-world trio of backers. Created to merge the interests of young players, parents and coaches, WePlay incorporates multimedia sharing and community discussion. The stars' collective investment: $8.6 million in 2008.
Foursquare
Ashton Kutcher Social media darling Ashton Kutcher--famous for routing CNN to become the first person with 1 million
Twitter followers--is set to cash in on networking enterprise,
Foursquare. Established in 2009, the service combines gaming experience with GPS technology to get people out and about. Users check in via smart phone at registered venues, collecting virtual and real-life credits along the way. Kutcher, an early angel investor in the startup, has helped the company raise $21.4 million to date
Alchemist Management
MC Hammer
Stanley Burrell, better known as 90s hip-hop sensation MC Hammer, recently announced he is carving out a stake in the world of mixed martial arts (MMA), and he'll do it from a corner office. From sudden bankruptcy to social media resurgence, Burrell signed on in July as CEO of Alchemist Management, an MMA marketing venture.
The Filter
Peter Gabriel
The ever forward-thinking 80s music vanguard is helping to drown out the sound of online flotsam with a new music and entertainment recommendation system. Launched in April 2008 and backed by Gabriel and Eden Ventures (initial investment: $1.8 million), the telepathic search engine sifts through online media and spits out tracks based on user interests.
Funny or Die
Will Ferrell
The big-screen comedy heavyweight and former SNL star made the move back to the small screen on HBO's Funny or Die Presents, courtesy of his co-owned online multimedia community of the same name. The content conglomerate, seeded by Sequoia Capital, features original material by comedic bigwigs (Adam McKay and Zach Galifianakis included) and encourages viewers to contribute their own creations. An undisclosed investor chipped in $2 million in December 2008.
CafeMom
The former
Melrose Place hunk tapped into his female fan base when creating this matronly social networking site in 2006. It now boasts 2 million registered users. Shue and two other investors own 100% of the equity. The site recently began partnering with
Good Morning America to report the "MomIndex," which measures the well-being of American moms.
ShoeDazzle
Kim Kardashian
For a low monthly fee, this fashion-friendly website promises the personal styling perks of the, er, well-heeled plus a choice of one featured item (shoes, handbag or jewelry) per month. ShoeDazzle received $7 million to kick things off in 2009 and a second round of $13 million this year from Lightspeed and Polaris Venture Partners.
Gwyneth Paltrow
GOOP
What girl wouldn't want fashion and lifestyle advice from a rock-star-marrying, miracle-cleanse-touting, Oscar-winning cover girl? That's just what the ultra A-list actress had in mind when she launched well-being site GOOP.com in fall 2008. Paltrow's chic and minimalist site skips daintily from recommendations for diet and exercise, to musings on religion and retail. While detractors cite the thinness of the advice, some 150,000 subscribers have signed up to live life Gwyneth-style.
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