From Humble Beginnings To Billionaire Status: The Rise Of Pilot Flying J

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Truck stops are big business. Just look at Tom and Judy Love and their multi-billion dollar fortune. The Haslam family of Tennessee are also billionaires, thanks to their chain of truck stops, Pilot Flying J, which they sold to Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway in 2017 – making them another billionaire family that has Warren Buffet to thank for a big chunk of their good fortune. The Pilot Corporation was founded by Jim Haslam, the father of former Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam. Jim Haslam was a star football player at the University of Tennessee, enrolling in 1948 when the Volunteers won the 1951 national championship. He was a starter on the O-line and member of Sigma Chi fraternity, finishing second in the voting for the Heisman Trophy during his junior season.

After graduating from college, he joined the Army and spent time in Korea after the Korean War. When he returned to Tennessee, he took a job with Fleet Oil. A year later, he became head of the company's new Sail Oil chain of gas stations. In 1958, Haslam left Sail to start his own company. On October 9, 1958, Haslam incorporated Pilot Oil Corporation and soon bought the first gas station in Virginia for $6,000. This station had four fuel pumps and sold soft drinks and cigarettes. Initially, he focused on Virginia and Kentucky due to a non-compete agreement with Sail Oil that lasted three years.

By 1965, Pilot had a dozen stations but was in debt, leading Haslam to sell a 50% interest to Marathon Oil, which ensured Pilot would have a consistent fuel supply. This deal also came with a $4 million loan that allowed Pilot to continue its expansion. Tragically, Haslam's wife Cynthia passed away suddenly in 1974, prompting their eldest son Jimmy, a college student at the University of Tennessee, to take her place on the board of directors. Not long after, Pilot expanded into convenience stores and opened its first travel center in Kentucky in 1981. Marathon Oil disapproved of Pilot's expansion, prompting Haslam to buy back the 50% share in 1988.

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By 1994, Pilot acquired 11 Pro Stop stations, officially making it the second-largest truck stop chain in the U.S. The following year, Pilot had 80 travel centers in 33 states and 51 convenience stores in Tennessee and Virginia. In 1995, Jimmy Haslam stepped into the CEO role while Jim Haslam became the company's chairman and his other son Bill took over as president. Expansion continued throughout the early 2000s, and by 2008, Pilot was the largest truck stop and travel center chain in the U.S. In 2010, Pilot merged with the Flying J truck stop chain, which was going bankrupt, creating the new brand Pilot Flying J that operates over 550 travel stops across 23 states and Canada.

Today, Jimmy Haslam is the billionaire owner of the Cleveland Browns while Bill Haslam is the former Governor of Tennessee. The family sold Pilot Flying J to Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway for $2.8 billion, making them beneficiaries of Buffett's business strategy. The Haslam family continues to oversee the day-to-day operations of Flying J, with Jimmy Haslam still serving as CEO. There are now more than 750 Pilot Flying J locations in 44 states and six Canadian provinces, selling over seven billion gallons of fuel annually and serving 1.6 million guests each day.

The Haslam family's collective net worth exceeds $6 billion, with Bill Haslam's share at $2.1 billion and Jimmy Haslam's at $4 billion. Their journey from humble beginnings to billionaires showcases the potential of hard work, strategic decisions, and seizing opportunities in the ever-growing truck stop industry.