Today we’d like to introduce you to Amanda White.
Hi Amanda, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I’m currently the Director of Operations at Day 1 Sports & Entertainment, a sports agency representing NFL players that my partner and I started in 2016. I grew up loving football (by my dad’s influence) and knew I wanted to work towards a career in the industry. I come from a tiny town in the middle of nowhere – Chase, KS (population: around 400). I graduated with 13 people in my high school class. I had to work hard to network. After I completed my undergraduate degree in Kansas, I met an NFL agent, Deryk Gilmore, whom I interned for at the large firm he was with at the time. I worked for him for six months, unpaid, just to learn the ins and outs of the agency business. At that time, Deryk and I decided to branch out and start our agency – Day 1 Sports & Entertainment and brought all of our clients with us. We’ve been going on six years now.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The football business is extremely competitive and cutthroat for anyone, let alone a woman. Along with the struggles Deryk and I faced as a new, small agency competing with large firms with hundreds of agents and millions of dollars at their disposal, I faced quite a few people, places, and situations that made me question whether I was in the right place. I finally decided instead of changing myself to fit into that place, I would see to it that I worked to change that place to better fit me, and it ultimately worked out.
Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about Day 1 Sports & Entertainment?
Sports agency representing professional athletes. We represent about 25 NFL players, an Olympic swimmer, and several sports media personalities. We’re a small, family-oriented, full-service agency that provides services such as contract negotiation, marketing, public relations, philanthropy planning, and legal services to our clients.
If you had to, what characteristic of yours would you give the most credit to?
Thinking bigger and never staying complacent. Not being afraid of being uncomfortable.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.day1sports.com
- Instagram: @amanda_w16
