Hamdi Ulukaya
Born 1972 · Age 53
Turkish-Kurdish entrepreneur, founder, chairman and CEO of Chobani; philanthropist focused on refugees, employee ownership and social entrepreneurship. Became a billionaire through the growth of Chobani Greek-style yogurt.
Compare Your Trajectory
See how your career milestones stack up against Hamdi Ulukaya and other industry leaders.
Life & Career Timeline
Born in İliç, Turkey
Born to a Kurdish dairy-farming family in a small village in Erzincan Province; grew up tending sheep, goats and making cheese and yogurt.
Studied political science at Ankara University
Attended Ankara University where he studied political science before moving to the United States.
Moved to the United States to study English at Adelphi University
Emigrated to the U.S. to study English at Adelphi University on Long Island, New York.
Married Ayşe Giray (first marriage, late 1990s)
Brief marriage to Dr. Ayşe Giray during the late 1990s (marriage later ended).
Transferred to University at Albany, SUNY
Moved upstate, transferred to the University at Albany and enrolled in business courses; took a job on an upstate farm.
Founded Euphrates feta cheese plant
Opened a small wholesale feta cheese factory in Johnstown, New York, importing the family's feta; business named Euphrates.
Euphrates business barely broke even by two-year mark
After two years, the feta venture had just barely broken even, describing the period as the most challenging days of his life.
Purchased used milk separator for $50,000
Found and negotiated the purchase of a used commercial milk separator in Wisconsin to enable production of strained (Greek-style) yogurt.
Named the brand 'Chobani'
While picking up the milk separator he conceived the brand name 'Chobani' (from Turkish çoban, shepherd).
Found yogurt factory for sale (South Edmeston, NY)
Noticed a mailer advertising a fully equipped, defunct yogurt factory (previously Kraft) and toured it the next day.
Purchased defunct yogurt factory (South Edmeston) and founded Agro Farma
Bought the 84-year-old factory with SBA loan and local grants; initially named Agro Farma and rehired former Kraft employees.
First shipment of Chobani to grocery store
Shipped first few hundred cases of Chobani to a Long Island grocer; the store reordered the next week.
Chobani picked up by BJ's and Costco
Major retailers BJ's and Costco began carrying Chobani, helping accelerate distribution and growth.
Launched CHOmobile sampling truck; large-scale sampling program
Created the CHOmobile and gave away 150,000 full-size containers in its first year; used sampling and social outreach for marketing.
Established Chobani Shepherd's Gift Foundation
Founded Chobani's charitable arm (later Chobani Foundation) to donate 10% of company net profits to charitable causes.
Chobani becomes leading U.S. yogurt brand (by 2011)
Chobani rose quickly to become a leading yogurt brand in the United States.
Chobani surpasses $1 billion in annual sales
Achieved over $1 billion in annual sales less than five years after national launch.
Lawsuit by ex-wife over ownership stake (53% claim)
Ex-wife Dr. Ayşe Giray sued claiming a 53% stake and a $500,000 loan; the suit was paused and later settled for an undisclosed amount.
Named SBA National Entrepreneurial Success of the Year
Chobani recognized by the U.S. Small Business Administration for entrepreneurial success.
Ernst & Young U.S. Entrepreneur Of The Year (Retail & Consumer Products)
Won the U.S. EY Entrepreneur of the Year award for retail and consumer products.
Opened world's largest yogurt factory in Twin Falls, Idaho
Opened a new plant in Twin Falls with a $450 million investment; greatly expanded production capacity.
Tribeca Disruptive Innovation Award and other honors
Received multiple recognitions including Tribeca Disruptive Innovation Awards and Brand Genius Award (Adweek) in 2013.
Named EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year
Recognized as the Ernst & Young World Entrepreneur Of The Year 2013.
Appointed Presidential Ambassador for Global Entrepreneurship (PAGE)
Named by President Barack Obama as an inaugural member of PAGE to encourage entrepreneurship domestically and abroad.
Completed major debt financing with TPG ($750M)
Chobani raised approximately $750 million in debt financing from private equity firm TPG (reported 2014); allowed growth and restructuring of capital.
Pledged $2 million to UNHCR
Donated $2 million to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to support refugees.
Signed The Giving Pledge; pledged majority of wealth to philanthropy
Signed the Giving Pledge committing to donate the majority of his personal wealth (pledged at the time at least $700M) to help refugees and humanitarian causes.
Visited Lesbos to see refugee crisis; launched Tent Foundation
Visited Greek island Lesbos in September 2015 and launched the Tent Foundation to assist refugees and encourage corporate hiring of refugees.
Became majority investor in La Colombe Coffee Roasters
Invested to become the majority investor in La Colombe (mid-2015) expanding his consumer brand investments beyond Chobani.
Invited to join Special Olympics International Board of Directors
Joined the volunteer international board helping determine Special Olympics global policy.
Launched Chobani Food Incubator
Launched an incubator to mentor socially responsible food entrepreneurs; expanded Chobani's mission to support food startups.
Announced giving employees 10% of Chobani shares
Surprised employees by announcing he would give them 10% ownership in Chobani, a landmark employee ownership move.
Launched Hamdi Ulukaya Initiative (HUG) for Turkish entrepreneurs
Launched HUG in July with a $5 million budget over five years to train and support Turkish entrepreneurs.
Named one of Time's 100 Most Influential People
Recognized by Time magazine in its 2017 list of the 100 Most Influential People in the World.
Featured on Fast Company cover: leadership profile
Fast Company cover story titled 'How Chobani's Hamdi Ulukaya Is Winning America's Culture War' highlighted his business and philanthropic model.
Featured on CBS 60 Minutes segment 'Chief of Chobani'
CBS's 60 Minutes profiled Ulukaya's approach to business and philanthropy, increasing his national profile.
Received Honorary Doctorates (multiple institutions)
Awarded honorary Ph.Ds including University at Albany (2014 earlier) and additional honorary degrees through 2018–2019.
Featured on Ellen and Good Morning America; 10th anniversary nationwide give-away
Appeared on national TV to announce Chobani's 10th-anniversary celebration giving a Chobani to every person in America and philanthropic activities.
Hoopp Capital Partners (Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan) buys 20% stake; TPG exit
Chobani cut ties with TPG and brought in Hoopp as a long-term investor with a reported 20% position; terms undisclosed.
Gave TED Talk 'The anti-CEO playbook' (Vancouver)
Delivered a TED Talk on the main stage about his 'anti-CEO' approach prioritizing employees and purpose.
Paid $77,000 to clear Warwick School District student lunch debt
Covered $77,000 of outstanding school lunch debt for a Rhode Island school district to prevent 'lunch shaming'.
Multiple awards (2019): Oslo Business for Peace, Global Citizen Prize, ADL Courage Against Hate
Received several major awards in 2019 recognizing business leadership and humanitarian work.
Raised Chobani starting wage to at least $15/hour
Chobani increased its starting wage to $15 per hour in spring 2021, citing belief that higher wages benefit business.
Appointed UN SDG Advocate by UN Secretary-General
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres appointed him as an additional advocate for the Sustainable Development Goals (July 2022).
Forbes net worth estimate: US$2.1 billion
Forbes reported Hamdi Ulukaya's net worth as approximately US$2.1 billion (October 2022).
Pledged $2 million to 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquake relief
Pledged $2 million to aid relief efforts following the devastating 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquake.
Chobani revenue and employment scale (approx.)
Chobani reported approximately $2 billion in revenue (reported estimates 2023) and employed over 2,000 people in the U.S.
Acquired Anchor Brewing
Acquired historic Anchor Brewing (announced in news: purchase completed in June 2023) as a separate acquisition from Chobani.
Chobani withdraws IPO plans (postponed) to retain independence
Company twice-postponed plans for an IPO and withdrew plans (reported by CFI/Forbes) citing market conditions, choosing to remain independent.
Plans to invest $1.2B in new New York dairy and $500M in Idaho expansion
Forbes (Oct 2024) reported Ulukaya planning $1.2B investment in a state-of-the-art New York dairy and committing another $500M for Idaho expansion.
Reported sponsorship of Fenerbahçe football club
Reportedly became jersey and stadium name sponsor of Fenerbahçe A-team, paying around €20M annually (reported; negotiations/news 2025).
Key Achievement Ages
Explore what Hamdi Ulukaya and others achieved at these notable ages:
Similar Trajectories
Changpeng Zhao
Born 1977 · Age 48
Chinese-born Canadian software engineer, investor and founder/former CEO of Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume.
Cyan Banister
Born 1977 · Age 48
American self-taught engineer, entrepreneur, prolific angel investor and early-stage VC partner; early investor in Uber, SpaceX, Niantic, Postmates, Affirm, Carta and others; co-founder of Zivity; first female investing partner at Founders Fund; partner at Long Journey Ventures.
Tim Ferriss
Born 1977 · Age 48
American entrepreneur, author, podcaster, angel investor and lifestyle author known for the '4-Hour' book series, The Tim Ferriss Show podcast, early-stage tech investing, and philanthropic support for psychedelic research.
Emmanuel Macron
Born 1977 · Age 48
French politician, former investment banker and civil servant; President of France and Co‑Prince of Andorra since 2017. Founder of En Marche! (now Renaissance); former Minister of the Economy (2014–2016) and Élysée deputy secretary‑general (2012–2014).
Charlie Lee
Born 1977 · Age 48
American computer scientist and entrepreneur; creator of Litecoin and Managing Director of the Litecoin Foundation; former Google software engineer and Director of Engineering at Coinbase.
Jeff Lawson
Born 1977 · Age 48
American entrepreneur and investor; co-founder and longtime CEO of Twilio; serial founder (Versity, StubHub, NineStar) and early Amazon product manager who helped launch AWS; investor and philanthropist.