Wrestlers in Business is coming to a town near you. The group started as a LinkedIn page in early 2009, and is now a fast growing outlet to connect former wrestlers who are, you guessed it, in business.

One of the founding partners, Aaron Grossman, started the Linkedin page after being inspired by what he saw in his work life. He witnessed how entrepreneurs, like him, were connecting. 

“I’m an entrepreneur, and a part of an entrepreneur’s group. At the beginning of the down economy, I was looking for support. I’ve considered myself a wrestler for life, and I wanted to connect with other wrestlers. I searched out for wrestlers and their profiles (on LinkedIn) and invited them to join the group,” he said.

Grossman, who wrestled at Miami University, partnered with Jason Effner, another former wrestler who felt disconnected with the sport that he loved.

“It was something that had been bouncing around a while. Something really struck me after college and hanging up my shoes. I was lost in the business world away from the sport,” Effner said, who wrestled at Cleveland State Univeristy. “Bringing people together can only benefit the sport.” 

Both are stationed in Cleveland, Ohio, and are in the process of launching their website where people can join for $60 a year. Benefits include networking opportunities, events, discussion forums, and working with local chapters. There are also links to job postings and scholarship information. Effner and Grossman are trying to start more chapters across the country. They have a launch party scheduled for Jan. 13 and a new commitment to start a branch of the group in Iowa already.

Iowa isn’t the only state that interest is known. Effner estimates that he gets three to five calls or emails everyday asking about starting a group in many different areas. He says that there’s interest internationally as well, having been contacted by ex-wrestlers in Canada and Dubai.

While interest in the group’s connections is still increasing, the group has other goals than just to bring former wrestlers together and create a network. WIB is a non-profit organization, wanting to raise money to support the sport whenever it can. Effner says that he wants to help inner city schools, like the one in Toledo, Ohio, are planning to cut all of its wrestling programs. Effner and Grossman also want to help colleges are cutting their programs as well.

“If a college is dropping a program, there are 100,000 people to fight the fight,” said Grossman.
Support for this advocacy to stop schools cutting programs even reached Hollywood. Recently, actor Billy Baldwin and director Wayne Boyd, both former college wrestlers, came together and shot a video discussing the growing problem of programs being cut. They applauded what Wrestlers in Business is doing, proving themselves how the sport can bring people together.

“The video couldn’t be a better example of what we’re about,” Effner said. “Both are ex-wrestlers working together on a product. […] It highlights what our organization can do and that there’s ex-wrestlers hidden in building somewhere. We can bring those people out of the woodwork.”