Meet Paul Guarino — sports marketing manager and athlete management expert from West Haven, Connecticut. Paul has dedicated his entire life to knowing everything there is to know about the sports industry and has always carried a profound passion for athletics. In 2011, he finally managed to turn his passion into a full-blown career.
PG Sports originally started out as a Twitter page with a small selection of t-shirt merchandise. But as followers poured in and the profile’s interest grew, the Connecticut entrepreneur went ahead and built an entire apparel brand dedicated to athletes and sport lovers like himself.
In hopes of growing the brand, Paul began to reach out to professional athletes through social media, asking if they wanted to receive some of the gear in exchange for a shoutout on their personal pages. Keep in mind, social media marketing was nowhere near as prominent in 2011 as it is today. Before he knew it, Guarino had a list of NFL stars, MLB players, and WNBA All-Stars repping PG Sports.
Connections kept coming and business kept growing as word got out about the brand. Over the years, Paul solidified his relationships with several athletes. Eventually, PG Sports transformed into a multifaceted business and Paul was able to accomplish his dream of managing pro-athletes from a marketing standpoint. Today, he’s gotten to work with over a dozen of them in various facets of the sports industry. The list of names goes on and on, but amongst it are also figures like Renee Montgomery from the WNBA and Brandon Copeland from the NFL.
When asked what motivates him to keep going, Paul responds by saying he’s actively had to choose to keep going in his life, despite the obstacles he’s been obligated to face. One of the bigger obstacles consisted of his SMA (spinal muscular atrophy) diagnosis, which he received at just 10 years old. Although it’s come to affect his physical abilities, it’s ultimately what’s prompted him to work harder, push further, and never look back.
PG Sports now has over 21,000 followers on Instagram and 16,000 followers on Twitter. The brand not only puts out signature apparel, but it also hosts a podcast and a series on YouTube called the “My Why” series. And the brain behind it all, Paul Guarino, strives to continue expanding the brand. He aims to work with even bigger athletes in the near future, and will continue to do everything he can to make his mark in sports history.
For updates, follow PG Sports on Instagram and Twitter at @pgsports. You can also visit www.pg-sports.com for any additional information.