The NFL football season may be over, but the interest in the business of sports never really dies.
That said, not only are the New England Patriots AFC division champions, but they also have the distinction of having former players accomplishing a ton after their playing career.
Insert retired Patriots defensive end Jarvis Green.
A nine year veteran, Green went from winning two championships with future Hall of Fame QB, Tom Brady to peeling shrimp and CEO’ing his Oceans 97 company; a salute to his uniform number.
The shrimp dishes are the bomb, too!
The mere mention of being a CEO of a shrimp distribution company sounds off the predictable references to the Academy Award film, Forrest Gump and the character of “Bubba,” played by Mykelti Williamson, who knew about shrimp, the shrimping business and how to cook shrimp.
If you can’t name all of the shrimp, shame on you! Here’s Bubba in case you forgot.
But I digress.
Green was more like Forrest. He learned about the business and his craft and took it to the next level.
Million dollar question: Why the shrimping business?
“I had opportunities to go do coaching,” Jarvis Green told me on Scoop B Radio.
“I had opportunities to go do broadcasting, being an analyst, boot camps, clinics all that stuff, you know, with ESPN.
Green cites owing a friend a favor as motivation for his career change. His friend already had a shrimping business that had 90 employees and access to 800 shrimping boats in Vietnam. Seemed promising. The kicker? His friend told him that he was going to sell shrimp in New England, the very place he called home and won two Super Bowls with the New England Patriots.
Show up, shake hands and kiss babies. Seems easy, right?
Sike!
Green did a 6-month internship and literally learned everything.
Step aside Bubba!
Jarvis Green is learning everything about shrimp and executing. Breaking shrimp, cleaning shrimp, handling shrimp and chopping shrimp.
He even learned the Vietnamese language. “I remember at some point they handed me a Rosetta Stone, Vietnamese,” Green jokes.
An unpaid internship, Green mastered his craft like Forrest. “Worked from the ground up,” he said. “From the first person in the shrimp plant, sweeping, mopping, cleaning bathrooms, cleaning the kitchen area.”
By the end of his internship, Green was one of the guys and gals on staff and was an asset; he even made purchasing orders to distributors.
Fast forward to 2015, the former defensive line man is not just a businessman, he’s a business, man!
Oceans 97’s entry point into the shrimp industry was as a wholesale distributor of shrimp in partnership with companies like Dole & Bailey – founded in 1850 – currently the oldest butcher in North America.
Through the relationship with Dole & Bailey, Oceans 97 shrimp is distributed to major financial institutions throughout New England and other products remain available in multiple grocery retail locations around the country.
The shrimp is domestic, wild caught, Gulf of Mexico shrimp, caught by US Gulf Coast fisherman and processed in Louisiana. The product ships in dry ice directly to the customer and arrives ready for cooking a delicious and satisfying family meal or when entertaining.
His Oceans 97’s gourmet line features easy-to-cook meals of shrimp packaged in bags with four flavors of sauce to choose from: New Orleans Style BBQ, Cajun Curry, Chimichurri, and Garlic Butter.
In just two years, Oceans 97 experienced rapid growth and in July 2017, launched a line of its own value-added shrimp products, which debuted on QVC via both their television programming and www.QVC.com.
His friend’s vision came true and Green trusted his process. “I’ve been very tied down to all those opportunities,” said Green.
“When you taste it, it’s just on your pallet. It’s savoriness and it just sticks with you man, you want to go grab a glass of wine and just wash it down. It’s elegant, fine dining at its best for under $10.99.”
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Patriots Super Bowl Champion Retires from Football, Starts New Business