by Monica Chamness
Staff Writer
The year is 1986. It’s the last quarter of the big game for quarterback Matt Robinson but the roar of the crowd sounds strangely dull. For Robinson, this is the end of an era, a transition from using his brawn to using his brains. The pendulum of Robinson’s career has swung from professional football player to seasoned businessman.
Back in the present, Robinson is firmly entrenched in corporate America with real estate as his second career. Today, his strategy unfolds in the board room, not on the playing field.
“Prior to me coming to Summit Contractors, the company didn’t have a formal, national campaign,” said Matt Robinson, senior vice president of business development at Summit Contractors, Inc. — a firm that handles general contracting, construction management and design/build projects. In early 2001, he was given the responsibility of marketing the company nationwide.
“When they brought me in, it opened the door for me to create a national campaign, completely reorganize our in-house business development, marketing, desktop publishing and website.”
Using his own play book, Robinson’s strategy hinges on developing new clients, holding onto present clients and muscling into new markets, including military and student housing and schools.
“In Florida, a lot of money has been designated due to class sizes so more schools are going to be built,” he said. “We also want to push more into student housing.”
So far, Robinson’s business savvy has complemented the company’s upwardly spiraling revenue.
“We have 50 projects presently in 22 states with contract values totaling $250 million,” said Robinson. “In the last 18 months, the company has grown by $80-100 million in a bad economy.”
Robinson believes the Jacksonville-based company’s prosperity is due to their participation in the multi-family housing market. National projects facilitated by Summit vary according to their financial structure: tax credit, HUD [Housing and Urban Development], market rate [privately-owned and funded in a conventional way] or student housing. Summit also does commercial work regionally.
“Multi-family housing is very production-oriented,” he said. “Time, quality and budget are the key components. Lots of investors, with the volatility in the stock market, have moved into real estate. Also, there’s a major boom in the population from age 21-28 and 61-65. Those are your two audiences that look into renting — those fresh out of college and empty-nesters.”
Robinson’s path to recognition in the real estate community began after retiring from the NFL following eight seasons. He played college football at the University of Georgia — where he also earned a bachelor’s degree in business — before being drafted by the New York Jets in the ninth round. Robinson played for three years with the Jets, starting roughly half the time. He was subsequently traded to the Denver Broncos, released after a couple of years and then immediately signed by the Buffalo Bills, where he completed his NFL career. He did sign another contract, this time with the Los Angeles Raiders, but had to leave training camp after his father was diagnosed with cancer.
“I was living in Sarasota at the time and was contacted to play with the United States Football League, who actually had a team here,” he recalled. “Instead of sitting out for a full 12 months, I played a couple of years [with the Jacksonville Bulls], got beat up and decided to retire. It was a good career; it was fun.”
In 1986, Robinson retired from the game at the youthful age of 31 and entered the corporate world. He started in the sales division of a local real estate company. Five years later, he was hired by a developer and eventually became their in-house salesperson. From there, he joined a financial public relations company as one of the principals, representing emerging companies in the stock market. When the offer came from Summit, he was ready to go.
“My background tied into making sense here [at Summit],” he said. “I saw an opportunity with a company that was in a growth mode. There was the opportunity to move up. I loved the industry, knew the owners and loved the corporate culture.”
Still, Robinson has not forgotten about his football past. Sports fans can continue to hear his commentary as a radio color analyst during Jacksonville Jaguars games.
“When I was with the p.r. company, the Jaguars approached me about a job there,” said Robinson. “For the last couple of years, I’ve been the radio color analyst. You’ve got a play-by-play man who calls the play. I critique things. Obviously, part of the goal is to teach football over the air. Those that can’t be at the game can turn the radio on and we’ll describe everything to them, make them feel like they’re there and hopefully, teach them a little about football in the process.”
Robinson is the father of one girl, seven-year-old Mattison, who will be getting a new mom soon; he is getting married at the end of May to Rayonier employee Liz Goodwin.