Entrepreneur and Two-time Basketball Hall of Famer Earvin "Magic" Johnson to open the 2024-2025 Lake Michigan College Speakers Series

Event: Earvin “Magic” Johnson, part of the Lake Michigan College Speaker Series
When: Friday, Aug. 23, 2024 5 p.m. - Dinner 6:30 p.m. - Presentation
Where: Lake Michigan College Mendel Center Grand Upton Hall
2755 E. Napier Avenue, Benton Harbor, MI 49022 Tickets: www.TheMendelCenter.com
$85 | Dinner & Presentation
$50 | Presentation Only

BENTON HARBOR, MICH. – The Lake Michigan College Mendel Center welcomes entrepreneur and two-time basketball Hall of Famer Earvin “Magic” Johnson as the first guest of the 2024-2025 LMC Speaker Series on Friday, Aug. 23, in Grand Upton Hall. A pre-speaker buffet dinner will be served at 5 p.m. The presentation will begin at 6:30 p.m. Attendees can choose from the dinner and presentation ticket package or presentation-only tickets.

During his LMC Speaker Series appearance, Johnson will share experiences and lessons from his ground-breaking business career and time as a champion on the basketball court.

Johnson is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Magic Johnson Enterprises, an investment conglomerate that provides high-quality products and services that focus primarily on ethnically diverse and underserved urban communities. Having left the basketball court for the boardroom, Johnson parlayed the skills and tenacity he acquired on the court into a winning formula for his successful business ventures.

For the last three decades Johnson has consistently turned heads with his unprecedented partnerships. In his early years as an entrepreneur, he forged an alliance with Sony Pictures to develop Magic Johnson Theatres. In 1998, he teamed with Starbucks to become the only franchisee in the history of the company, acquiring and eventually selling 125 stores in a lucrative move which further solidified his position in the business world. Both ventures served as catalysts for redevelopment in urban communities and are widely recognized as the corporate blueprint for engagement and success with urban consumers across America.

Still a commanding presence in the sports world, Johnson recently made history in 2023 when he became co-owner of the Washington Commanders, a National Football League franchise that was purchased for $6.05 billion. The Commanders acquisition marks the highest purchase price for any U.S. professional sports team to date. He also co-owns the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball, Los Angeles Sparks of the WNBA, Major League Soccer’s Los Angeles Football Club, and eSports franchise Team Liquid.

Johnson continues to expand his influence through a number of other investments. He currently has controlling interests in EquiTrust, a multi-billion financial services company, and SodexoMAGIC, a food service and facilities management company.

The Lansing native is constantly evolving and remaining relevant in a dynamic digital age by broadening his scope into infrastructure and technology. In 2015, Magic Johnson Enterprises and Loop Capital formed an alliance to create MJE-Loop Capital Partners. The firm raised a fund committed to investing millions of dollars on infrastructure improvement in the United States. Current projects include the John F. Kennedy Airport New Terminal One, LaGuardia Airport Terminal B, and Los Angeles World Airports Cargo Modernization Program. He is also one of the leading investors in a number of technology companies that include Skydio, a drone manufacturing company that became the first U.S. drone manufacturer to exceed $1 billion in value.

The accomplishments and global impact of Earvin “Magic” Johnson are on display in They Call Me Magic, the only first-person account of Johnson’s life from childhood to business. The AppleTV+ project was the top selling documentary series per episode when released in 2022.

With his unique positioning as a businessman spanning multiple industries and generations, he aims to help companies expand and foster a positive impact domestically and globally.

Tickets for the Earvin “Magic” Johnson LMC Speaker Series event are available now and may be purchased online 24/7 at www.TheMendelCenter.com/events.

This event is sponsored by Michigan Pizza Hut, Inc. and Sturgis Bank – St. Joseph Banking Center, with special appreciation to General Motors Corporation.