Business

NFL Veteran Launches Supplement Brand

THE AFRO — Health is a “lifestyle” for Visanthe Shiancoe. Regarded as the greatest NFL tight end, since Raymond Chester from Morgan State University, Shiancoe was notorious for his insane training regimen while preparing for a pro football career.. That same drive now fuels his foray into the business world as he launches a nutritional supplement brand.

Published

7 years ago

September 5, 2019

Oakland Post

Former Morgan State and NFL player Visanthe Shiancoe has launched a locally based nutritional supplement brand after an 11-year pro football career. (Courtesy Minnesota Vikings)

By Mark F. Gray

Health is a “lifestyle” for Visanthe Shiancoe. Regarded as the greatest NFL tight end, since Raymond Chester from Morgan State University, Shiancoe was notorious for his insane training regimen while preparing for a pro football career.. That same drive now fuels his foray into the business world as he launches a nutritional supplement brand.

Shiancoe, a decade long NFL veteran, is owner of Gavvai Nutrition, a company that creates healthy products to support healthy lifestyles. The supplements from his company creates are not chemically based, and are designed with athletes in mind. The vitamin works to restore joints so that athletes and workout enthusiasts alike can maximize their efforts to stay in shape and decrease recovery time.

“Health is a lifestyle choice,” Shiancoe tells the AFRO. “The stuff I put into my body is very important before and after working out.”

Shiancoe’s fitness training regimen at MSU remains the talk of the campus especially in Hill Field House. The former football player came to MSU as a tall and slender 195-pound stick of a man Montgomery Blair High School, where his team finished with only one victory in his senior year. With a lot of hard work, Shiancoe would finish MSU as a 250 pound NFL prospect who would play for more than a decade. The weight room was his sanctuary and saving grace, keeping him from the social distractions of the HBCU experience which would eventually plant the seeds for the second act of his professional life.

“They used to kick me out of the weight room,” Shiancoe recalls with a chuckle. “Even when I got to the league I was really into fitness and really into taking care of my body everyday. So I just took that strategy and passion and put it in a product that other people can enjoy too.”

Shiancoe’s body took an enormous pounding during his NFL career. His odyssey began as a special teams player with the NY Giants, and also where former MSU legend Roosevelt Brown became a Hall of Fame offensive linemen. He would go on to play in Philadelphia, New England, and Minnesota. These cities were known for having brutally cold weather and older stadiums with outdated artificial surfaces. All of that makes the process of after-game recovery very important.

Those factors can be the gateway to a bigger issue. Players looking to bounce back immediately after a game will often use opioids which ultimately leads to abuse.

For this reason, Shiancoe created natural organic supplements for his consumers. The products aren’t genetically modified at all, and are able to restore joints by reducing inflammation without creating a chemical dependency.

“Most of the ingredients are natural and organic,” Shiancoe said with an exhale. “They aren’t made in a lab. We went through the non-GMO [certification] process and didn’t just slap the term on them like some others do, but I think it’s worth it.”

Shiancoe is the most accomplished professional non-olympic athlete that MSU has produced over the last 30 years. He was selected by the Giants with the 91st pick in the third round of the 2003 NFL Draft. During his career he caught 245 passes for 2,679 yards, and 27 touchdowns while averaging almost 11 yards per reception.

However, Shiancoe is most remembered for his prolific 2009 season with the Minnesota Vikings. Shiancoe teamed with Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre to lead the Vikings with 11 touchdown catches. The Minnesota Vikings ultimately lost the NFC Championship Game to the future Super Bowl Champions New Orleans Saints with a final score of 31 to 28.

This article originally appeared in The Afro.

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Oakland Post: Week of February 25 – March 3, 2026

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of – February 25 – March 3, 2026

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1 week ago

March 1, 2026

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Chase Oakland Community Center Hosts Alley-Oop Accelerator Building Community and Opportunity for Bay Area Entrepreneurs

Over the past three years, the Alley-Oop Accelerator has helped more than 20 Bay Area businesses grow, connect, and gain meaningful exposure. The program combines hands-on training, mentorship, and community-building to help participants navigate the legal, financial, and marketing challenges of small business ownership.

Published

2 weeks ago

February 21, 2026

Oakland Post

Bay Area entrepreneurs attend the Alley-Oop Accelerator, a small business incubation program at Chase Oakland Community Center. Photo by Carla Thomas.

By Carla Thomas

The Golden State Warriors and Chase bank hosted the third annual Alley-Oop Accelerator this month, an empowering eight-week program designed to help Bay Area entrepreneurs bring their visions for business to life.

The initiative kicked off on Feb. 12 at Chase’s Oakland Community Center on Broadway Street, welcoming 15 small business owners who joined a growing network of local innovators working to strengthen the region’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.

At its core, the accelerator is designed to create an ecosystem of collaboration, where local entrepreneurs can learn from one another while accessing the resources of a global financial institution.

“This is our third year in a row working with the Golden State Warriors on the Alley-Oop Accelerator,” said Jaime Garcia, executive director of Chase’s Coaching for Impact team for the West Division. “We’ve already had 20-plus businesses graduate from the program, and we have 15 enrolled this year. The biggest thing about the program is really the community that’s built amongst the business owners — plus the exposure they’re able to get through Chase and the Golden State Warriors.”

According to Garcia, several graduates have gone on to receive vendor contracts with the Warriors and have gained broader recognition through collaborations with JPMorgan Chase.

“A lot of what Chase is trying to do,” Garcia added, “is bring businesses together because what they’ve asked for is an ecosystem, a network where they can connect, grow, and thrive organically.”

This year’s Alley-Oop Accelerator reflects that vision through its comprehensive curriculum and emphasis on practical learning. Participants explore the full spectrum of business essentials including financial management, marketing strategy, and legal compliance, while also preparing for real-world experiences such as pop-up market events.

Each entrepreneur benefits from one-on-one mentoring sessions through Chase’s Coaching for Impact program, which provides complimentary, personalized business consulting.

Garcia described the impact this hands-on approach has had on local small business owners. He recalled one candlemaker, who, after participating in the program, was invited to provide candles as gifts at Chase events.

“We were able to help give that business exposure,” he explained. “But then our team also worked with them on how to access capital to buy inventory and manage operations once those orders started coming in. It’s about preparation. When a hiccup happens, are you ready to handle it?”

The Coaching for Impact initiative, which launched in 2020 in just four cities, has since expanded to 46 nationwide.

“Every business is different,” Garcia said. “That’s why personal coaching matters so much. It’s life-changing.”

Participants in the 2026 program will each receive a $2,500 stipend, funding that Garcia said can make an outsized difference. “It’s amazing what some people can do with just $2,500,” he noted. “It sounds small, but it goes a long way when you have a plan for how to use it.”

For Chase and the Warriors, the Alley-Oop Accelerator represents more than an educational initiative, it’s a pathway to empowerment and economic inclusion. The program continues to foster lasting relationships among the entrepreneurs who, as Garcia put it, “build each other up” through shared growth and opportunity.

“Starting a business is never easy, but with the right support, it becomes possible, and even exhilarating,” said Oscar Lopez, the senior business consultant for Chase in Oakland.