Meet Jake Teplitzky | Founder and Managing Member of TMG (Teplitzky Management Group), Athlete Manager

December 14, 2022 Leave a reply

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jake Teplitzky and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jake, every day, we about how much execution matters, but we think ideas matter as well. How did you come up with the idea for your business?
Before attending the University of Miami, I never thought about working in the sport industry. I came up with the idea during an ethics debate in one of my classes sophomore year (2017). The debate was about if Student-Athletes should be able to be compensated. For many of my peers in the class, it was just a debate question, for me, it was the catalyst for something much bigger than myself. Many of my close friends in undergrad were Student-Athletes, so for me, it was not about a hypothetical issue but rather one that hit close to home. During the debate many points were brought up from the opposition which sounded the alarms for me. It was then that I realized that there was no one who was looking out for the student-athletes best interest. I recognized that change was coming to the world of college sport and I wanted to help be a voice of reason and guidance for Student-Athletes in an industry as ruthless as sport. My goal was to protect, educate, and support my peers in an attempt to elevate and put them in a position to win both on and off the field.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?

TMG, Teplitzky Management Group, is an Athlete management and consulting firm focused on Name, Image, Likeness (NIL), Athlete protection, financial literacy, and career guidance.

TMG currently represents over 25 Student-Athletes varying in University, Sport, and Conference. Being in the Sport Industry requires grit, resilience, tenacity, determination, and faith. The Sport Industry is not an easy one to break into however, if you are in it for the right reasons it does make it easier to stand out.

I did not get into sports because I was a fan or because of the money. I started TMG to make a difference for those who were looking beyond their athletic career. I started TMG because I wanted to see my peers be supported on the path to success.

With regards to challenges and obstacles, there will always be challenges with overcoming adversity as a start-up; competing with other firms that are established, have more man power, and bigger budgets. What TMG currently lacks in size, we make up for with heart, charisma, passion, integrity, and ethics.

There many lessons that I have learned throughout this journey. One of the greatest lessons being, it’s not about doing something first, its about doing it right. What I mean by that is take your time in what you do. People often believe that when something new is brought to the masses, if you want to capitalize on the opportunity, you have to be first. Personally, I believe that its not about being first, but being the one who does it right. In this new world of NIL everyone believes that it is an arms race to gain sponsorship for clients when the real issue that we should be discussing is what do these opportunities look like in terms of legal language, what are the Student-Athletes agreeing too, are the Student-Athletes rights’ protected. As a good friend of mine once said, “Do it right, do it light. Do it wrong, do it long.”

If I had the opportunity to share what makes TMG different from other representation groups and management firms are our values. TMG operates with integrity, ethics, and purpose. TMG is here for all athletes at all levels. We are here to protect, elevate, and support our clients in business and in life.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?

Miami is one of my favorite places in the world. I came down here for college in 2016 and haven’t left since. Some of my favorite places to go are Wynnwood, the Design District, South Beach every once in a while, and of course Brickell.

Some of my favorite spots to eat are Chicken Kitchen, Pura Vida, Pubbelly, Tobacco Road, Komodo, American Social, Bonding, Cote, and 1-800-Lucky to name a few.

If we are going out, we will probably hit Monty’s, The Warf, Komodo Lounge, Gekko Lounge, LIV, Story, Mr. Jones, and of course E11EVEN.

For art, definitely hitting Wynwood. I am a big fan of street art.

For shopping, Design District, Brickell City Center, Wynnwood, or Shops at Merrick Park.

For beach, Crandon Park or get chairs for the day in South Beach.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?

First I would like to dedicate this to my parents. Without their support, guidance, and role modeling I would not be where I am today. They believed in me, even at times when I did not believe in myself. TMG operates with values, integrity, and ethics, all lessons that I learned from my parents.

I would also like to recognize and thank the members of the TMG Advisory Board; David Beckerman, Vin Baker, Stacey Gersten, Marcy Silverman, Ashley Blume, and Jeffrey Teplitzky.

TMG would be nothing without my role models and mentors. Thank you for being part of this journey and showing me the way.