Savannah Bananas Founder Jesse Cole Reveals How He Went From $1.8 Million In Debt To A Billion Dollar Business: 'We Had To Sell Our House'

Savannah Bananas founder Jesse Cole went $1.8 million in debt to fund his dream, and it ended up becoming a billion dollar company. The exhibition baseball club is a disruptor that combines the game  with entertainment to create a juggernaut that's on par with the valuation of some MLB teams, and Cole shared how he grew the Bananas on George Kamel's YouTube channel.

"We had to sell our house," Cole said when discussing the initial challenges.

Sell Like Your Career Depends On It

You have to sell products and services to make money and keep your business alive, but that truth reached an extreme for Cole when the Bananas were in their early years.

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“There was no money," he told Kamel. "We had to sell tickets to keep us going. We had to sell merchandise to keep us going.”

Cole had his back against the wall and had to sell to stay afloat. Not only would the business have fallen apart if he didn't sell tickets, but he also would have been stuck with $1.8 million in debt. Although "coffee is for closers" remains a popular saying in the sales world, Cole didn't need it to grind out long days for his company.

“I’ve never had a sip of coffee in my life," he said.

It demonstrates that you don't need stimulants to sell at a high level. If there is enough urgency to sell and a high enough payoff, it's possible to outwork almost everyone.

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Creating A Great Product

A bad product with the best marketing won't get very far, but if the product is excellent, word-of-mouth marketing can take it far. When building the Bananas, Cole focused on creating a high-quality product that would attract fans and result in returning customers.

"We try to create something that we would love that makes us excited," he said.

He also put great care into who gets to play on the Bananas and its rival teams. This focus results in a better experience for his customers.

"Anybody can resonate with someone on our cast, on our team, and our characters," he told Kamel. 

Cole put a lot of care into his brand in its early days and continues to improve it. That amount of commitment resulted in a great product, and then it was a matter of selling Bananas tickets to as many people as possible.

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Start Small, Dream Big, and Live Below Your Means

Cole was ambitious in the early stages of the Bananas, but he didn't aim to play in MLB stadiums right out of the gate. The Bananas now play in several MLB stadiums each year, but Cole said on George Kamel's YouTube channel that he initially focused on doing a "one city world tour" and building from there.

"Start small, dream big," he said to Kamel. "Don't despise humble beginnings."

Despite achieving big things with the Bananas, he doesn't have a big lifestyle, and he's fine with that. Cole still drives a 2018 Honda CR-V.

"My dad taught me to save every other paycheck, so half of every paycheck," he said.

Cole also said that money doesn't excite him since he lives his life in the same way. 

"Money doesn't excite me," he said to Kamel. "It’s not going to change the way I live. I don’t have plans with that money."

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