Youngest Female Billionaire: US Woman Linked to Burger Chain In-N-Out
Who said that there isn't a future in fast food?
Lynsi Torres, the 30-year-old owner and heiress of the In-N-Out Burger company, a popular fast food chain that is mainly operated out of the West Coast, has become the youngest female billionaire in America, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
In-N-Out Burger has become such a hot commodity in the fast food world, and yet Torres has little to no desire to franchise or go public. Famous for its Double-Double cheeseburgers, discreet biblical messages written on paper goods (reflecting their family's Christian views) and outstanding customer service, the burger chain has had reported sales of about $625 million in 2012. Expanding the business would definitely see an overall increase in earnings but for In-N-Out, it's quality over quantity. Started back in 1948 by Harry Snyder and his wife Esther, co-founders of In-N-Out Burger and Torres's grandparents, Torres is quite literally keeping within the family tradition.
"They have done a fantastic job of building and maintaining a kind of cult following," said Bob Goldin, executive vice president of Chicago-based food industry research firm Technomic Inc. "Someone would love to buy them."
One of those potential buyers happens to be billionaire mogul Warren Buffett. Back in 2005, Buffett said to a group of visiting business students that he would like to own the fast food chain, according to an account of the meeting on the UCLA Anderson School of Management website.
From a single drive-thru hamburger stand in Baldwin Park, California, to a rapidly growing chain that is now a billion dollar empire, the thrice-married Torres may not have a college degree but she clearly learned the most important business model lesson of all: if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
