Chick-fil-A heirs top Forbes' list of Georgia's billionaires again
FOX 5 Atlanta illustration
ATLANTA - The owners of those famous chicken sandwiches aren’t just bringing in waffle fries and milkshake money—they’re serving up billions. Forbes has released its annual list of the world’s richest people, and the wealthiest Georgians are led by none other than the family behind Chick-fil-A.
What we know:
Tied at No. 213 on the global list, Bubba Cathy, Dan Cathy, and Trudy Cathy White have a combined net worth of $11.4 billion. The trio, children of Chick-fil-A founder S. Truett Cathy, continue to helm the ever-growing fast-food empire, which now boasts more than 3,200 restaurants around the globe.
However, the Cathy family’s climb up the financial ladder comes during a rare slowdown in Chick-fil-A’s meteoric sales growth. According to the company’s latest franchise disclosure document released Wednesday, U.S. systemwide sales grew just 5.4% in 2024—totaling $22.7 billion. That’s down from $21.6 billion in 2023 and marks the lowest growth rate for the brand in at least 19 years.
To put that in perspective, Chick-fil-A had been averaging 15.5% growth between 2020 and 2023, and had not dipped below double digits since 2013. A new 24-hour location inside Dallas-Fort Worth Airport (yes, still closed Sundays) might help give those numbers a nudge in 2025.
Hot on the Chick-fil-A family's heels is Home Depot co-founder and Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank, ranked No. 329 with an estimated $9 billion to his name. Blank launched the first Home Depot stores in 1979 with business partner Bernie Marcus and now also oversees the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation.
The third-wealthiest Georgian is Gary Rollins, chairman of pest control giant Rollins Inc. He was ranked at No. 487. Not very surprising considering the number of bugs in the South.
Other big Georgia names making the billionaire cut include:
John Brown (No. 369): Former CEO of medical device company Stryker, worth $8.2 billion.
Jim Kennedy (No. 512): Former Cox Enterprises chairman, with a $6.6 billion fortune.
Dan Kurzius (No. 634) and Ben Chestnut (No. 717): Co-founders of Atlanta-born Mailchimp, with net worths of $5.6 billion and $5.1 billion, respectively.
Turns out, Georgia's billionaires span everything from sandwiches to software—and they're definitely not hurting for dipping sauce.
Big picture view:
They're just a slice of the global billionaire buffet. Forbes’ 2025 World’s Billionaires list now features a record-breaking 3,028 members worth a jaw-dropping $16.1 trillion combined—that’s more than the GDP of every country except the U.S. and China. The average billionaire? Worth a cool $5.3 billion.
This year, for the first time ever, three people are worth more than $200 billion. Elon Musk leads the pack with $342 billion, thanks to booming business at SpaceX and his AI firm xAI. He's followed by Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg ($216B) and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos ($215B). LVMH luxury king Bernard Arnault has dropped to fifth.
The U.S. remains billionaire HQ with 902 on the list, followed by China and India. New faces this year include Bruce Springsteen, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jerry Seinfeld—and even the moguls behind Cava, Zaxby’s, and Jersey Mike’s. Yes, your sandwich habit may have helped someone join the billionaires club.
So whether it’s chicken nuggets or chipotle bowls fueling the fortune, the billionaire boom is alive and well.