Born to Arlette and Gerry Snyder, a middle class Jewish family, Dan is no rookie in the world of business. At the age of 17, he was already into business. It was also during that time that he experienced his first business failure while partnering with his father. They were selling bus-trip packages to Washington Capitals for their hockey team’s play in Philadelphia. After a tough loss, he was disappointed to see all their flyers littering on the streets. He gave business another try at the age of 20. This time, he was leasing jets to fly college students to the Caribbean and in Fort Lauderdale for the spring break. He was running his business from his parents’ bedroom together with his friend and it was said that he was able to clear his first million during this venture.
It was at the age of 20 that he dropped out of the University of Maryland, College Park. In 1989, he partnered with his sister Michelle and founded the Snyder Communications LP by maxing out her credit card limit of $35,000 and their father taking a second mortgage on his property in England. The business was a success as a wallboard advertising focusing on college campuses and doctor’s offices. He later on decided to sell the business in 2000.
He used to own Dick Clark Productions until he sold it to Guggenheim Partners for $370 million in 2012. He is a primary investor in Red Zebra Broadcasting, home to Redskins Radio ESPN. His leadership skills was criticized after his team only won four seasons during his presidency in the team. Redskins is considered as the third most valuable team in the NFL.