Started from the bottom, now we’re here! After she started working at Chick-fil-A at 15 to save enough money to buy her first car, Ashley Lamothe, who is now 26, has become the youngest person to own her own Chick-fil-A restaurant. 

Lamothe continued her work with Chick-fil-A during college when her boss asked about her long-term goals and aspirations. The restaurant operator saw potential in a young Lamothe that she hadn't yet seen herself. 

“I’d never considered it,” Lamothe told The Chicken Wire. “Sometimes you just need someone to help you see your potential.”

The Spelman grad changed her major to economics and opened her own Chick-fil-A in 2011. Shortly after, she was awarded the company’s Symbol of Success, which spotlights Chick-fil-A operators whose chain has experienced high sales growth. The young entrepreneur has accomplished much in five years after finishing school, and now she wants to pass the baton to her team at the restaurant. 

“I want to help them get to where they want to go,” Lamothe said. “Whether it’s a career with Chick-fil-A or studying law or medicine, or anything. I want to help them make that next step, just like so many have done for me.”

What else is in store for this #BlackGirlMagic powerhouse? A second shop! 

According to College Daze, Lamothe will open a new Chick-fil-A in downtown Los Angeles, and we can’t be more excited for her! 

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