Rob Dyrdek Net Worth

When I first heard the names, Rob and Big Black, I naturally assumed they were a 1990s boom-bap rap duo from New York. I couldn’t have been more incorrect if I had tried. I was never much of a skateboard fan or a sneaker pimp. So, Rob’s entire existence went over my head back in the early 2000s.

However, when I did see their MTV reality TV show… 

I immediately liked them and started to do more research on this incomparable pair. And, the Rob Dyrdek net worth number shook me to my roots. I already knew he was pretty famous and made a ton of cash from designing skateboard sneakers and other fashion items. But, I failed to understand the sheer scale of his operation.

Rob has proved himself to be one of the most prolific entrepreneurs of the past 20 years. Most things he touches turn to gold. Let’s take a look at how much Rob Dyrdek is worth and how he made his vast fortune.

How Wealthy is Rob Dyrdek?

The net worth of Rob Dyrdek is listed at $110 million in 2023. He is a former American pro skater, fashion brand creator, TV star, entrepreneur, and business mogul whose success has defied all logic. 

Tony Hawks was the first to show how a skater could form a brand and make hundreds of millions of dollars. Simply by making the right business and endorsement moves. Rob has done something similar but to a lesser extent. Apparently, Rob makes around $10 million per year via his business activities. 

And he has been doing so for over a decade or more…

He’s made a decent slice of his money from collaborating with the skater fashion brand DC to create several high-selling sneaker lines. His cash also comes from TV shows such as “Rob & Big” and “Ridiculousness”. Also, by launching and investing in other businesses via his venture capital group named Dyrdek Machine. 

There’s so much to unpack. So, let’s start at the beginning to find out how Rob Dyrdek became rich and famous at the same time.

How Did Rob Dyrdek Go From Skater to Business Mogul?

Robert Stanley Dyrdek was born in Kettering, Ohio, on 28 June 1974. He started skateboarding at around 11 years old and quickly knew it was the career path for him. Rob used to think about skating all the time while in school and couldn’t wait for the bell to ring so he could get down to the skate park. Education and gaining diplomas were very low on his priority list as a kid and young man.

Even at 11, he was already sponsored by a local skate shop company… 

And, by 12 years old, he was competing in skateboarding competitions. He placed first in the National Skateboard Association North Central District championship at the age of 15 and then turned pro at 16, which was a pretty big deal for Dyrdek at the time. Rob was a pro skater until around 2005. So, in all honesty, he had a great run, but his life path lay on a different route. 

Early Pro Skateboard Sponsorships 

From a very young age, Dyrdek learned how the business worked. He had numerous sponsorship and endorsement deals from a variety of skating companies throughout his pro skateboard career. This set him in good stead going forward to bigger things. Some of Rob Dyrdek’s earliest sponsorship deals were via Gordon and Smith Skateboard Company (G&S), Alien Workshop, and Ohio Trucks. 

DC Shoes Sponsorship Deal

By 1995, the big boys came calling. A company called Droors Clothing, which went on to become DC Shoes, took a liking to Rob and sponsored him. At the time, it was impossible to understand how important the Dyrdek and DC Shoes collaboration was going to be in each other’s success going forward. 

Around this time, Dyrdek and DC launched his RD 1 shoe design. It was the first Rob Dyrdek signature shoe in his fledgling sneaker-designing career.

Over the next 20 years… 

The DC and Rob Dyrdek collaboration designed and launched 29 signature shoes in his name. Around 1999 and 2000, while Rob was still skating, he founded his Dyrdek Enterprises company. He also got 6th place in the 2000 X-Games in San Francisco. 

As Rob Dyrdek’s skating career entered its twilight years, he focused more on business. As well as forming another company dedicated to skate accessories called Silver Trucks. 

He officially retired from pro skating in 2005 and was beginning to think about life after skating. He conceptualized a unique idea called the Rob Dyrdek /DC Shoes Skate Plaza and constructed it in his hometown of Kettering. This was the first time that DC and Rob had pooled together their investment money to work on outside projects as a joint venture. 

Rob Dyrdek’s Reality TV Years

I’m not sure what the Rob Dyrdek net worth figure was in 2005. But I can safely assume he was already a millionaire a few times over. Just not massively wealthy yet. Rob was only just beginning to understand brand awareness at the time and still had a lot to learn in a business sense. 

When Dyrdek starred in his own reality TV series on MTV, “Rob & Big,” he was relatively unknown outside the skating world. His relationship with MTV and reality shows quickly became the cornerstone of his rapidly growing wealth.

The Birth of Rob & Big

When “Rob & Big” premiered on MTV in 2006, it was originally an oddity to most viewers. For anyone that doesn’t know, Big, also referred to as Big Black was an African-American guy named Christopher “Big Black” Bokin, who happened to be Dyrdek’s best friend and bodyguard. 

They were quite the odd couple… 

Rob was a smaller waif-like white dude, while Big was this gargantuan black man. You get a cheap laugh just by seeing them stand side by side. The premise of the show originally came from a skit that Dyrdek wrote for a DC Shoes video in 2003. If you see the skit, Rob hired Big to protect him from aggressive security guards that gave Rob trouble when out shooting skate videos in public. 

The interactions and conversations between the two main protagonists were hilarious. And that was the reason why MTV was so interested in making the show.

The show lasted from November 2006 to April 2008, with a total of 31 episodes spread across three seasons. Although it began slowly, it started to catch on and became a cult classic for reality TV fans. 

The Falling Out of Rob & Big

Everything great must come to an end. And all we can hope for is an amicable finale. The sad truth is that Rob and Big fell out with each other. A fourth season was planned but never came to fruition, largely because of Big. 

The big man was tired of being the sidekick and the butt of all the jokes. But, in fairness, that was the layout of the show and why it became so popular in the first place. A massive argument and disagreement over creative control of the show caused a rift between the one-time friends.

It was sad to see…

What makes things even sadder is that Big Black passed away on May 7th, 2017, due to heart complications. However, I did find out that at some point over the years, Rob and Big settled their differences and were friends again. So, at least Rob had some sort of closure. 

If his friend had died before they’d made up, it would’ve affected Rob forever. One thing we must remember is Rob & Big catapulted Dyrdek to fame in the mainstream American consciousness. 

More TV Shows for Dyrdek

When Rob and Big parted ways in 2008, Dyrdek wasn’t ready to give up his reality TV career just yet. There was money to be made from his new-found celebrity. His next venture was “Rob Dyrdek’s Fantasy Factory”. Before you start getting excited, it’s not a porn flick. Although the name might suggest such a thing. 

The concept behind Fantasy Factory was a warehouse that was converted into a business hub where Rob managed his whole operation. Many of his Dyrdek Enterprises’ staff starred in the show. The show was around for seven seasons from February 2009 to March 2014, and was a massive hit for MTV. 

The madcap adventures from that show are legendary…

And it helped to propel Rob to even greater popularity, which he skillfully used to promote his other business interests. Including his DC shoes, his Street Skateboarding League (SSL) pro skating comp, and several other ventures. Rob Dyrdek’s SSL venture was massively successful, with the 2012 event being shown across 198 countries on ESPN.

The Birth of Ridiculousness 

If two shows and several business ventures running simultaneously weren’t enough. Dyrdek embarked on his third reality TV series with MTV. This one was called “Ridiculousness,” and it pretty much took over MTV programming. 

The premise of the show was Rob and his friends in front of a studio audience commenting and reacting to stupid online videos. Bearing in mind the show premiered on MTV in 2011, it was essentially the birth of reaction videos that we see today on YouTube. Some might say reaction videos were pioneered by Rob on Ridiculousness. Sorry, Pewdiepie!

From 2011 to 2020, “Ridiculousness” became Rob Dyrdek’s most successful reality TV show to date. Furthermore, by 2020 it took up the vast majority of MTV’s entire programming, which in hindsight, is not a good thing. 

Dydrek Enterprises Making Moves

During those “Ridiculousness” years, Rob wasn’t resting on his laurels and sticking to TV show productions only, far from it. His Dyrdek Enterprises company was making serious moves in the business world. And, the Rob Dyrdek net worth numbers continued to increase.

In 2012, his company acquired DNA Distribution, which was a business close to Dyrdek’s heart. That’s because it was a holding company for Alien Workshop. It also owned several other skateboard-related companies, such as Reflex and Habit.

By 2014… 

Rob has launched another company called Superjacket Productions which he used as a TV production company. His “Ridiculousness” shows were now under the Superjacket Productions umbrella. 

In turn, he inked a deal with MTV on a multi-year basis that ensured “Ridiculousness” and the final season of “Rob Dyrdek’s Fantasy Factory” came to fruition. Via Superjacket, Rob funded and created many other TV shows, such as “The Dude Perfect Show”.

Moving Into Investment Capitalism

The busiest man in TV and business then decided to form Dyrdek Machine in 2016. The purpose of this company was to facilitate investment in movies and film studio startups. The “venture studio” company, as Rob liked to call Dyrdek Machine, went on to invest in multiple companies like UFC, and Stance. And even co-founded a company called Midnight with Joe Jonas and Travis Barker. 

Dyrdek Machine went on to fund and invest in a total of 18 brands by 2020. These days, Rob is focusing more on building podcasts and several other venture projects. And he doesn’t seem like slowing down any time soon.

How Much Did Rob Dyrdek Make from His DC Shoes Relationship?

Some might say that Dyrdek’s partnership with DC Shoes is the thing that started his soiree into the world of business and finance. Rob has been quoted as saying that the Rob & Big TV show helped to grow DC Shoes from $80 million to $500 million in just three years. It’s an astounding number and just shows the forward-thinking nature of Rob using the show to promote his endorsements.

No one is quite sure how much Rob Dyrdek got paid by DC Shoes over their 20-year relationship. But, there are some reports he was getting around $300k per year from DC when he was in his early 20s.

How Much Did Roy Dyrdek Make from Reality TV Shows?

Dyrdek reportedly made around $60,000 per show for “Rob & Black.” Considering there were only 31 episodes, it’s not that much. However, he apparently got paid $100,000 per show for “Rob Dyrdek’s Fantasy Factory,” and there were 83 episodes over seven seasons. 

This would have made Rob around $8 million or more in total. Although, I’m unsure if he got paid for the vast plethora of constant reruns on MTV.

“Ridiculousness” was easily Rob Dyrdek’s most famous show. There were a total of 530 episodes, and Rob was stated as being paid $140,000 per episode. If you do the math, he made $74.2 million from that show before tax.

Rob Dyrdek’s Real Estate Portfolio

It’s been reported in numerous sources that Rob Dyrdek has a real estate portfolio that he spent around $25 million to obtain. He spent this number on three properties. All three are mansions located in the Hollywood Hills on the exclusive and prestigious Mulholland Estate. Each has majestic views overlooking Beverly Hills, and he still owns all three.

Over the years, he has purchased several properties that he went on to sell. Sometimes for profit, sometimes for a loss. But, as a wise man once said, make sure you buy land because God isn’t making any more of it. 

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Conclusion

The vast majority of Rob Dyrdek’s net worth calculations say he has a fortune of $100. But, it’s believed that figure is now closer to $110 million, if not more. Now that he’s knee-deep in the world of finance, his wealth will only get bigger. 

He’s not the sort of guy to sit around twiddling his thumbs. He gets things done and has an amazing track record of making profits. As well as using his brand exposure to elevate other companies to new heights. He makes smart acquisitions and has some very smart people giving him investment advice. 

As of today… 

Tony Hawks is still the richest skater ever, with a net worth of $140 million, but Rob is catching up. Dyrdek is currently the second-richest skater ever, but the way things are going, he could overtake Hawks over the next decade.

The vast majority of Rob Dyrdek’s wealth came from his MTV show “Ridiculousness.” But, if you ask fans, they love Rob & Black way more, and it’s hardly surprising. 

From a normal background in the suburbs of Ohio to the pinnacle of skating, skating fashion business, and reality TV worlds, there’s not much that Dyrdek cannot monetize. He’s one of the most famous celebrity entrepreneurs of our time, and kudos to him.

Until next, may you always find success.