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For Nick Woodman, it all started with a light-bulb moment of clarity and inspiration while on a surfing trip to Australia and Indonesia. The American businessman took a “light bulb moment” of inspiration, turning it into what is now known around the world as the GoPro. Since its inception in 2002, the tech company’s action camera has been used everywhere from sporting events to the entertainment industry. By 2015, Woodman had joined the ranks of tech billionaires and was a “guest shark” on ABC’s hit show, Shark Tank. Yet, unfortunately, GoPro’s stock price has dropped significantly in the subsequent years.
Therefore, we here at Sophisticated Investor, decided to answer, “How much is Nick Woodman worth?”. Over the years, there has been much speculation as to just how much the GoPro founder, and CEO has to his name. Below, we’ve compiled a profile of Nick Woodman using all publicly available data.
Please take note that all figures provided are simply estimates, and not conclusive. Regardless, we utilized all of the publicly available assessments in order to determine the probable range of Mr. Woodman’s net worth.
 | Nick Woodman |
|---|---|
| Date of Birth | June 24, 1975 |
| Title | Founder, CEO, Investor |
| Companies Founded | EmpowerAll.com, Funbug, GoPro |
| Best Known For | Inventing the GoPro action camera |
| Nationality | American |
| Net Worth (USD) | An estimated $900 million |
What Is Nick Woodman’s Net Worth?
Research indicates that Nick Woodman’s net worth in 2021 is somewhere in the range of approximately $900 million. Of course, this figure is simply a rough estimate based upon publicly available appraisals to a range we consider likely for it to fall within.
A September 29, 2015, Forbes profile of Woodman placed his net worth at $1.75 billion. The Forbes article indicated that the GoPro founder, and CEO “owns about 36% of the company’s shares”. At that time, the GoPro stock price was significantly higher than it is in 2021. By 2016, Forbes stated that Woodman had dropped off its list of billionaires.
Nick Woodman Biography
Nicholas Woodman was born on June 24, 1975, growing up in Menlo Park, California, and Atherton, California, respectively. He is the son of the late Dean Woodman, who co-founded the financial services firm, Robertson Stephens, in addition to being a Silicon Valley investment banker. In 1997, Nick graduated with a Bachelor’s degree from the University of California, San Diego.
Woodman was bitten by the entrepreneurial bug after graduating from university, founding two start-ups, both of which unfortunately proved unsuccessful. While on an extended surfing trip to Australia and Indonesia, he experienced a light-bulb moment of inspiration that would birth the idea of the GoPro camera. As an avid action photographer, Woodman affixed a 35mm SLR camera to his hand with a rubber band, in an attempt to document his surfing adventure. Recognizing that there was a viable market for a lightweight camera capable of capturing action photography, Woodman developed a prototype that came with a strap that could easily be affixed to anything, including the human body – and the GoPro camera was born.
In 2002, after borrowing $200,000 from his father, Woodman founded Woodman Labs Inc. to manufacture his action camera. In June 2014, the company (now renamed GoPro) went public, raising over $427 million at $24 per share, with a valuation of $2.95 billion. By 2015, Woodman was a billionaire, thus garnering a guest-shark position on the sixth season of the Emmy award-winning ABC show, Shark Tank. Yet, within a year GoPro was experiencing weak sales, and its share price has significantly declined over the last half-decade.
How Did Nick Woodman Build His Wealth?
The bulk of Nick Woodman’s wealth is derived from his stake in GoPro. As mentioned earlier, it has been reported that Woodman owns over a third of the company’s shares. Unfortunately, GoPro has a lengthy track record of underperformance. However, over the last year, the company has experienced impressive growth, seeing an increase in its stock prices.
In March 2020, the company acquired ReelSteady, a company that makes image stabilization software.
How Is Nick Woodman’s Net-Worth Calculated?
Given that the majority of Woodman’s wealth is correlated to the performance of the company he founded, a general formula can be used to calculate his net worth. As a publicly-traded company, GoPro must disclose its financials in compliance with SEC regulations. Public disclosures of share ownership often make up the lion’s share of the celebrity’s wealth, which is then used as a proxy for determining their net worth.
Disclosures are combined with the individual’s publicly-known assets (for example, properties, yachts, airplanes, etc.) and then subtracted by their publicly-known debts to arrive at a rough estimate. This is the general formula used to calculate Nick Woodman’s net worth of roughly $900 million.
Who Else Invest Like Nick Woodman?
Not all investors have the same style. To compare investors like Nick Woodman check out these investor profiles:
Want to Invest Like Nick Woodman?
Having a net worth comparable to Nick Woodman’s may very well be a bit unrealistic for most investors. However, you definitely can start aggressively investing by diversifying your portfolio with alternative investments not correlated to the stock market.
Open a self-directed IRA, so you can build a portfolio that appreciates in value on a tax-free or tax-deferred basis. This way, you can invest in a variety of high-upside asset classes unavailable to regular brokerage account investors. Learn more about how to build long-term tax-free wealth by reading our Precious Metals IRA and Bitcoin IRA reviews.
