Manufacturer signs deal with local star athlete

Southwest Florida manufacturing entrepreneur Bill Daubmann believes he scored a touchdown with his latest marketing move: signing a college football player to represent his company, MY Shower Door.

Fort Myers-based MY Shower Door recently signed a branding partnership with Peter Simmons III, who has committed to play for the University of Michigan. A 6-foot-3, 305-pound offensive lineman, Simmons III is the son of former Bonita Springs Mayor Peter Simmons II. The younger Simmons, according to a statement, graduated from Bishop Verot High School in Fort Myers, and in November he signed a commitment to play for the Wolverines. “Our team at MY Shower Door is excited to follow Peter’s college football career with the Wolverines and proud to have him representing our company,” Daubmann says in a statement.

Financial terms of the deal with Simmons III weren’t disclosed. The partnership stems from a July 1 NCAA rule change that allows college athletes to monetize their name, image and likeness — a transformational shift that followed a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling. MY Shower Door is one of the first companies in Florida to sign a college athlete since the NCAA announced the new rule.

Simmons III is the fourth consecutive generation of his family to attend the University of Michigan. Also, his great-grandfather was part of the team that dug the hole for the Michigan Stadium, known as the Big House, in the 1920s. Daubmann, meanwhile, is a sports fan and in a past life it’s how he made his living: he was a top-rated referee in the American Hockey League for a time, on his way to refereeing in the NHL before he focused on other opportunities, including MY Shower Door.

“This is such an exciting time for college athletes, and I am honored to represent MY Shower Door during my college football career with the Wolverines,” Simmons III says in the statement. “I think it is great that the NCAA now allows college athletes to be rewarded and compensated for our name and likeness.  It is very exciting to have our hard work and dedication over the years recognized.”

MY Shower Door, with more than 100 employees and some $17 million a year in revenue, has installed more than 75,000 frameless shower doors since 2003.