We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Stephen Bienko. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Stephen below.
Stephen, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?
At 42U, our mission is to educate, develop, and brand student-athletes, not just for success on the field, but for impact far beyond it. Our work is rooted in a deep belief that an athlete’s identity should never be confined to stats, wins, or even the jersey they wear. Who they are as a person, how they think, lead, and contribute to the world is their true brand.
This mission stems from the legacy of Jackie Robinson, who serves as our inspiration and our namesake. Jackie wasn’t just a Hall of Fame athlete. His power came from what he represented as a human being. He used the field not to define himself, but to display who he was to the world, a man of resilience, dignity, and courage. His brand transcended baseball because his mission was never about playing a game. It was about standing for something bigger than himself.
That philosophy is woven into the DNA of 42U. Today’s student-athletes find themselves at a critical juncture in culture, where NIL, social media, and evolving power dynamics present both opportunities and challenges. We’re here to guide them through it. Not just to help them monetize, but to help them *understand* who they are, what they stand for, and how to carry that into society with confidence and clarity. Because when an athlete knows who they are beyond the uniform, they gain the freedom to grow into who they’re truly meant to be.
This isn’t just our business. It’s our purpose. And like Jackie, we believe the real victory is in leaving the game and the world a better place than we found it.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
For me, this isn’t just business; it’s personal.
I got into this industry because I lived it. I was a Division I football player and a decathlete in college. I was on scholarship, which meant I couldn’t earn income, even though I wanted to. I had an entrepreneurial spirit long before I had a business plan. I was hungry to create, to contribute, to work. But like so many student-athletes, I was boxed into a narrow identity: athlete first, and not much else after that.
After college, when the cheers stopped and the identity faded, I found myself facing a crisis I wasn’t prepared for. I didn’t know who I was outside of sports. I didn’t know how to define my value or communicate it. I had no sense of my brand, my purpose. That loss of identity is something too many student-athletes go through, and I never forgot how that felt.
That’s why I built 42U.
42U exists to help student-athletes understand and express who they are beyond the scoreboard. We provide branding kits, identity assessments, and educational development that equip them with the tools to define their story, communicate their value, and own their future. Whether it’s building a personal brand for NIL opportunities, preparing for a career after sports, or simply understanding how they perform under pressure, we help them see themselves as more than athletes. We help them realize they are leaders, creators, entrepreneurs, and role models.
What sets us apart is that we’re not just teaching them to sell themselves. We’re helping them understand themselves. That internal clarity, what we call their “brand DNA” becomes the foundation they can build their careers, businesses, and lives on.
Our tools, like the 42U Assessment, help uncover not just what they’re good at, but why they think and operate the way they do. Our branding kits tell their story in a clear, confident way that can be used for everything from recruiting to corporate networking, NIL, and grad school applications. And for universities, we bring structure and strategy to athlete development in a time when college sports are rapidly becoming more professionalized and where the athlete brand, the team brand, and the university brand really matter.
What I’m most proud of is that 42U is meeting this cultural shift in college athletics with humanity, honesty, and opportunity. The NCAA is changing. NIL is changing. Expectations are changing. But in that change, there is enormous potential not just for student-athletes to make money but to discover meaning. I want every athlete to know: you are not just a player. You are not a stat line or a scholarship.
Even while you’re competing, and especially after your last game, you are someone of worth. Your story matters.
Conversations about M&A are often focused on multibillion dollar transactions – but M&A can be an important part of a small or medium business owner’s journey. We’d love to hear about your experience with selling businesses.
Yes, I’ve sold two businesses. One was modestly successful and helped me learn the fundamentals of entrepreneurship. The other, College Hunks Hauling Junk, was far more visible and financially successful. But while that exit looked strong on paper, the experience taught me some of the most painful and valuable lessons of my career.
At the time, I was operating from a place of ego. I was chasing validation, not alignment. I was trying to sell a version of myself that I thought the world wanted to see, one based more on perception than purpose. I was still navigating the aftershocks of not really being in touch with my identity (although to most I had it all figured out), and I hadn’t yet done the deep work of truly understanding who I was or what I stood for.
That lack of self-awareness led to poor decisions. I rushed the sale. I ignored red flags. I focused on the optics of the deal rather than the structure and long-term sustainability. I lost money, and worse, I damaged relationships I truly valued. All because I didn’t know my brand, my value, or my voice. I was selling from insecurity rather than clarity.
Looking back, that experience was a turning point. It shaped who I am today and directly influenced why I started 42U. It reinforced to me that entrepreneurship isn’t just about building companies; it’s about building yourself. Today, when I speak with athletes, founders, or future entrepreneurs, I always say, Don’t build to sell. Build to align. Know who you are. Know your brand. And when the time comes, sell from a place of truth, not ego.
The numbers matter, yes, but nothing is more expensive than selling something before you understand the value of what you’re truly holding.
We’d love to hear about how you met your business partner.
I consider myself incredibly lucky to have not one, but two co-founders who I deeply trust and respect, each relationship forged through very different but equally meaningful journeys.
One of my partners has been my best friend since the fifth grade. We won a state basketball championship together in the eighth grade, and honestly, that experience set the tone for how we work together now. We learned what it means to win together, to trust each other in high-pressure situations, and to support one another through the ups and downs. Building a business with someone who already understands your strengths, your weaknesses, and your heart carries a powerful effect. We’ve been through it on and off the court for decades.
My other partner started as an intern at one of my earlier companies. From the start, he never asked for shortcuts. He diligently worked, persevered, and dedicated himself to learning at every stage. What I admire most about him is that he trusted the process. He believed in the vision even when the payoff wasn’t immediate. This rare combination of loyalty, humility, and grit made it an obvious choice to bring him into this new chapter.
These partnerships weren’t built on paper. They were built through real-life shared wins, losses, late nights, and loyalty. And that’s what makes them so valuable.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.the42u.com
- Instagram: @bienkostephen
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephenbienko/
- Twitter: @stephenbienko
