Paul Rodriguez on Nike SB, Founding Primitive, & Investing in Everything From Beer to Lemons

On this week’s episode of IDEA GENERATION, Paul Rodriguez Jr. (aka P Rod) takes us on a journey from his early days as a young skateboarder in California, to becoming the face of Nike Skate, to launching his own company, Primitive Skateboarding. Along the way, P Rod has become an acclaimed investor, exploring the trades of everything from beer to lemons... and it all started with one idea. Act I 00:00 intro 1:10 Growing up dreaming 2:17 Getting into skating and when it turned into obsession 4:08 Crafting a career from passion, finding sponsorships 8:24 Creating his style, learning from the greats 9:52 Turning pro Act II 11:08 Landing Nike 14:06 Processing criticism 14:32 Changes that came after Nike 15:42 “Cut from a different cloth” 16:40 Approaching fatherhood 18:49 Defining success 19:07 Launching Primitive 21:32 Saint Archer’s pitch 24:02 Making the decision to sell the business 24:54 Taking ownership of yourself 25:43 Burnout, injury & the challenge of recovery Act III 27:53 Entering the final stage of his professional career 29:00 Full circle moments 30:16 good idea vs. bad idea 30:42 Lemon ranch investment 33:04 “I’m not an entrepreneur” 34:07 Next phase of life 35:44 “Keep the fire burning” Subscribe to IDEA GENERATION for new episodes every Monday at 5pm EST: Check out more from IDEA GENERATION here: IG: TT: @... TW: Credits: Noah Callahan-Bever Creator & Host, Idea Generation Starring: Paul Rodriguez Musical Director: A-Trak Animations by: Sang Bleu / IDEA GENERATION Executive Producers: Helena Ox, Tricia Clarke-Stone and John Walaszek Producer: Adam Fleischer Jack Erwin Creative Director Editor: Kyle Gaughan Produced by: Raw Media House Director: Mike Mirasco DP: Taylor Ross Producer: Kasandra Baruch Production Manager: Brian Antezana Cam Ops: Ryan Ramsey, Dylan Burzinski Gaffer: Rob Julin Key Grip: Eric Gilbert Sound: Ken Pries PAs: Isaac Antezana, Estavon Hawley MUA: Deena Sennie Photography: Michael Cusanelli Special thanks to: Mike Marasco Michael Cusanelli Donovan Bonner Dawn Baxter Kennard McClennan Fred Mortagne Ryan Ewing