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Ryan Friedlinghaus Net Worth

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Ryan Friedlinghaus Net Worth

What is Ryan Friedlinghaus’ net worth?

Net Worth:$15 Million
Age:49
Born:April 22, 1975
Gender:Male
Height:1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)
Country of Origin:United States of America
Source of Wealth:Founder of West Coast Customs
Last Updated:Nov 21, 2024

Introduction

Ryan Friedlinghaus’ net worth is estimated to be around $15 Million.

The CEO of West Coast Customs, Ryan Friedlinghaus, built his business from scratch starting with just a $5000 loan from his grandfather and a dream to build the world’s best custom cars.

He truly has taken his business to the top, building some of the coolest customized cars possible; many of them being for celebrities including Justin Bieber, Chris Brown, Tyga, and Shaq.

 

Early Life

Ryan Friedlinghaus was born on April 22, 1975, in Los Angeles, California, USA

Before he became the CEO and co-founder of West Coast Customs, Ryan Friedlinghaus grew up with a passion for bikes and cars. 

Although he started working on his friends’ skateboards and bikes, as soon as he was old enough, he started working on automobiles.

His first real project was his pre-owned Mazda truck, which he made various modifications to all on his own. 

While there is little information about his education or formal training, we do know that there is no denying he has serious skills when it comes to pimping rides! 

 

Career

Starting His Own Company

An ambitious individual, it didn’t take long for Friedlinghaus to get started on his own company revolving around car modifications. 

When he was only 18 years old, he started West Coast Customs with a loan of $5,000 from his grandfather to kick things off. 

Fortunately, his grandfather believed in him enough to kick-start his passion because once his business started, it never stopped growing. 

Opened in 1994, West Coast Customs quickly became the go-to spot for celebrities who want to customize their luxury cars. 

Ten years after launching his company, it earned him his first television appearance on the hit MTV show Pimp My Ride. 

Aired in 2004, this show saw the likes of Sean Combs and Shaquille O’Neal head to West Coast Customs to get their rides upgraded. 

 

Earning TV Deals

Ryan Friedlinghaus’s time on Pimp My Ride helped elevate his company to become a well-known business that was sought-after by celebs. 

Not only that, but he was a staple on the show until 2007, after which he immediately received new offers to star in other television shows. 

While Friedlinghaus could have his pick of shows to appear on, he chose the show Street Customs, which aired simultaneously on Discovery and TLC. 

Having his business shown on these networks only helped his business expand further as he cemented his place in the automotive industry. 

Although the show was different, the format was very similar to that of Pimp My Ride, and it revolved around Ryan building cars for celebs. 

While he worked on luxury classics like a 1958 Corvette, he also was tasked with making some out-of-the-box cars, such as one based on Mad Max. 

As time went on, the show gradually shifted away from celebs and more towards everyday customers who visited his shop. 

That said, celebs were still regular clients, including big names like Kylie Jenner, Sylvester Stallone, and Justin Bieber.

During its 2009 season, Street Customs was renamed Inside West Coast Customs, and it moved to Discovery HD Theater and the automotive channel Velocity. 

The name was later changed again in 2013 when the Fox Sports Network took it over, dropping the “Inside” from future seasons. 

The show continued to be produced by Fox until 2017, when it was taken over by Velocity for the 2017 and 2018 seasons. 

 

Roller Coasters and Franchises 

Following the success of Ryan Friedlinghaus and West Coast Customs, Six Flags Magic Mountain announced a collaboration in 2018. 

Named West Coast Racers, this towering roller coaster was designed partly by West Coast Customs and boasts some record-breaking features. 

Not only was it the first racing coaster to have side-by-side tracks, but it was even built with an immersive “pit stop” feature. 

Alongside this, Friedlinghaus has been able to open two notable franchises, one in Dubai and another in Shanghai. 

The Dubai franchise was first announced in 2007 and continues to operate today using the West Coast Customs trademark. 

Meanwhile, the Shanghai franchise opened in 2016 and was met with substantial news coverage from the Chinese media. 

 

West Coast Customs Academy

Thanks to his unprecedented success in the auto industry, Ryan Friedlinghaus has turned his attention to helping young people succeed like he did. 

To do this, he partnered with Burbank Unified School District and founded the West Coast Customs Academy. 

His goal with these classes is to introduce young people to the industry and give them the skills they need to start their own careers. 

This includes giving them access to a state-of-the-art facility geared towards teaching students an array of automotive disciplines. 

While the program was only in its infancy in 2022, it is starting to get off the ground, with dozens of students applying every semester. 

It’s nice to see someone as successful as Ryan Friedlinghaus using his position to help lift others! 

 

Ryan Friedlinhaus Net Worth

Ryan Friedlinghaus’ net worth is estimated to be around $15 Million.
 

Summary

Ryan Friedlinghaus has built the coolest custom car company in the world.

The imagination and creativity he’s brought to West Coast Customs has made them stand out above anyone else in the business.

Ryan Friedlinghaus’ net worth is estimated to be $15 Million.

What do you think about Ryan Friedlinghaus’ net worth? Leave a comment below.

Dan Western is a British journalist with a decade's worth of experience in researching financial information of the world's most influential people.

3 Comments

3 Comments

  1. Dave Evad

    Apr 16, 2017 at 6:45 am

    Self made off the backs of all the employees he has went through over the years. Pushing them in to long hours so they have no life except for the shop and making him money.

    • jake

      Sep 20, 2017 at 9:54 pm

      congrats. you know how to define the word “boss”

  2. Miska

    Jun 17, 2018 at 7:08 am

    I echo the same words from David & Jake above. If you look under that pretty hood & dig a little, you’ll find the dismantled non-functioning engine close by! Years of making his fortune off the backs of his employees, as well as the average Joe who has attempted to get custom work done who has been treated like crap.
    At one time I had some pretty good respect for Ryan and the show. Not so much anymore……

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Entrepreneurs

Carlos Ghosn Net Worth

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Carlos Ghosn Net Worth

What is Carlos Ghosn’s net worth?

Net Worth:$120 Million
Age:70
Born:March 9, 1954
Gender:Male
Height:1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)
Country of Origin:Brazil
Source of Wealth:Entrepreneur
Last Updated:Nov 21, 2024

Introduction 

Carlos Ghosn is a Brazilian-born French businessman with an estimated net worth of $120 Million. 

Ghosn is best known for being the CEO of Michelin North America, Renault, AvtoVAZ, Nissan, and Mitsubishi Motors.

 

Career Overview

After graduating from the École des Mines de Paris in 1978, Carlos Ghosn worked for Michelin for 18 years. At first, he trained and worked at several plants throughout France and Germany before becoming a manager in Le Puy-en-Velay, France. 

In 1984, Ghosn became the head of research and development and, a year later, was named the COO of the company’s operations in South America. 

Ghosen moved to Rio de Janeiro, where the business had become unprofitable due to Brazil’s hyperinflation. Tasked with turning things around, Ghosen rose to the challenge with success and was named the president and COO of Michelin North America in 1989. 

 

Rising Through The Ranks

In 1990, Carlos Ghosn became the CEO of Michelin North America and oversaw the company’s restructuring after purchasing Uniroyal Goodrich Tyre Company. 

Six years later, Ghosn was elected Vice President of research, purchasing, development, and manufacturing at Renault, a French auto manufacturer. Under his guidance, Renault became exceptionally profitable, which led to Renault and Nissan forming the Renault-Nissan Alliance in 1999. 

While maintaining his previous roles, Ghosn became Nissan’s COO and was named president in 2000 and CEO in 2001. Ghosn turned Nissan’s sinking profits around with his “Nissan Revival Plan,” which reduced the company’s debt by 50% by 2002. To do this, he cut 14% of jobs, shut down five Japanese plants, and auctioned off assets, including the company’s aerospace division. 

In 2005, he became Renault’s president and chief executive, making him the first person to run two Fortune 500 companies simultaneously. While not as wealthy as the richest people in America, Ghosn’s business strategies for success were undeniable, even if some people disagreed with his methods.

 

Ghosn’s Recent Business Deals

Carlos Ghosn became the chairman of GM in 2005, following a merger between the company and Renault and Nissan. Ford offered to allow Ghosn to lead the company the following year, but he refused, stating he’d have to be made both CEO and chairman. 

In 2007, Ghosn pushed Renault-Nissan into the electric car market, which helped make it the world leader in electric vehicles by 2017. Soon after, he was named the deputy chairman of the Russian auto manufacturer AvtoVAZ and, in 2013, became the company’s chairman. 

After a long tenure, Ghosn stepped down as CEO of Nissan in 2017 while remaining chairman and was succeeded by Saikawa Hiroto. However, the year before, Ghosn had become chairman of Mitsubishi Motors following Nissan’s acquisition of a 34% stake in the company. 

At Mitsubishi, Ghosn’s goal was to rehab the automaker, though he was removed from his post in 2018 after his arrest over false accounting allegations. After that, Ghosn’s affairs began to fall apart, and by the end of 2019, he was still imprisoned. 

In late 2019, he was able to post bail and quickly left Japan for Lebanon, where he continues his legal battles today.

 

Carlos Ghosn Net Worth

In 2024, Carlos Ghosn’s net worth is estimated to be $120 Million. 

 

What do you think about Carlos Ghosn’s net worth? Leave a comment below. 

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Entrepreneurs

Rich Barton Net Worth

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Rich Barton Net Worth

What is Rich Barton’s net worth? 

Net Worth:$2.1 Billion
Age:57
Born:June 2, 1967
Gender:Male
Height:Unknown
Country of Origin:United States of America
Source of Wealth:Entrepreneur
Last Updated:Nov 21, 2024

Introduction 

Rich Barton is an American entrepreneur and CEO of Zillow Group with an estimated net worth of $2.1 Billion. 

Barton has founded multiple companies, including online travel company Zillow, job search engine Glassdoor, and photography site Trover. Barton was a venture partner at Benchmark and is on the board of directors for Netflix, Avvo, Nextdoor, and Artsy.

 

Career Overview

After graduating from Stanford University with an engineering degree, Rich Barton started working for the Alliance Consulting Group in 1989. 

In 1991, he left and began working for Microsoft as a project manager for the operating system MS-DOS 5.0. While working for Microsoft, Barton founded the travel site Expedia in 1994 as the company was planning to build a travel guide on CD-ROM. However, Barton pitched the idea of an online service to Bill Gates, who permitted him to pursue the project. 

In 1996, Expedia made its debut on the internet, and Rich was the CEO of the site’s IPO until 2003, when it was purchased for $3.6 billion.

 

Making Billions

After selling Expedia’s IP, Rich Barton took a year-long break from business to relax in Italy and enjoy his success. However, he didn’t rest for too long and made a comeback in 2004 to begin setting his next business plan in motion. Now in Seattle, Barton began working on the site Zillow, which he believed could transform the real estate industry. 

In December 2004, Zillow was incorporated in Washington and officially launched in February 2006. Upon launch, the site included a home valuation tool, sales history, and value appreciation information. However, the site crashed on the morning of its launch because the servers weren’t strong enough to handle the immense traffic. 

By 2008, Zillow had grown exponentially and, in 2010, had become incredibly profitable for the first time since its launch. 

In 2012, Barton purchased Rentjuice and Hotpads, followed by Street Easy in 2013 and Trulia in 2015. All of this helped make Rich Barton one of the richest people in America, and his net worth continues to increase.

 

Maintaining Zillow

Although Rich Barton stepped down as CEO in 2010, he returned in 2019, replacing Spencer Rascoff. A year prior, the site began buying and selling through the new Zillow Offers, which partnered with local real estate agents. Upon returning to the CEO position, Barton began expanding Zillow Offers into new markets across the United States. However, when the pandemic struck in 2020, Zillow saw its stock hit a four-year low, forcing them to cut expenses to stay profitable. 

By July 2020, Zillow became one of the first companies to allow employees to work from home permanently. This allowed them to hire an additional 1,500 employees with the plan to expand their workforce by 40% by the end of 2021. 

Unfortunately, things didn’t pan out, and Barton announced in November 2021 that Zillow was shutting down its home-buying business and laying off 25% of employees. 

This didn’t stop the Zillow Group from acquiring other businesses throughout the 2020s to expand their reach. These companies include ShowingTime, Follow Up Boss, and VRX Media, all of which have benefited Zillow. At the same time, Forbes named Barton a billionaire in 2020 after his earnings from Zillow continued to grow. 

Now one of the richest people in the world, Rich Barton has a $700 million stake in Zillow and plans to turn it into a home-flipping machine. He’s undoubtedly lived up to his first name, earning billions through his business. 

 

Rich Barton Net Worth

In 2024, Rich Barton’s net worth is estimated to be $2.1 Billion. 

 

Highlights

Here are some of the best highlights of Rich Barton’s career:

  • Chief executive officer of Zillow Group
  • One of the top 10 innovators under 35 by MIT Technology Review (2003)
  • Presidential Ambassadors for Continental Entrepreneurship (2012)

 

Summary

Rich Barton is an American entrepreneur and businessman best known for being the CEO of the Zillow Group.

He is also the founder of Expedia and Glassdoor. Barton was born in Connecticut and graduated from Standford University. He has also founded the online travel photography-sharing site Trover.

He was a venture partner at Benchmark and served on the boards of directors for Netflix and Artsy. In 2012, he was named one of Barack Obama‘s Presidential Ambassadors for Continental Entrepreneurship. 

What do you think about Rich Barton’s net worth? Leave a comment below. 

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Entrepreneurs

Russell Simmons Net Worth

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Russell Simmons Net Worth

What is Russell Simmons’ net worth?

Net Worth:$340 Million
Age:67
Born:October 4, 1957
Gender:Male
Height:1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)
Country of Origin:United States of America
Source of Wealth:Entrepreneur
Last Updated:Nov 21, 2024

Russell Simmons is an American record producer and entrepreneur with an estimated net worth of $340 Million. 

Simmons is the co-founder of the record label Def Jam and has been among the top 25 most influential people in the industry over the past 25 years, playing a pivotal role in bringing hip-hop music to the forefront. 

 

Early Life 

Russell Simmons was born in Queens, New York, on October 4, 1957.

He is the son of Daniel Simmons Sr. and Evelyn Simmons. His father was a public school administrator, and his mother worked as a park administrator. Simmons attended the City College of New York for some time, after which he dropped out and went on to promote local musicians. 

 

Career

During college, Simmons met industry mentor Robert Ford Jr., and a few years later, he co-founded Def Jam Recordings with Rick Rubin. In 1985, he co-produced and appeared alongside Daryl McDaniels in the film “Krush Groove” and launched the Def Comedy Jam television program.

 

From Rap To Riches

The Def Comedy Jam program featured notable figures such as Dave Chappelle, Chris Rock, and Martin Lawrence, who were prominent comedians then. At the same time, Russell’s services to the music industry and hip-hop culture were honored at the 2004 VH1 Hip Hop Honors. A few years later, he produced hit films “The Nutty Professor” featuring Eddie Murphy and “How to Be a Player.”

In 2003, Russell established RushCard, a prepaid debit card provider, and launched Phat Fashions LLC, featuring Phat Farm and Baby Phat labels. The apparel line has a traditional appearance and feel thanks to the influence of designers like Ralph Lauren and Tommy Hilfiger. Not long after establishing the business, he sold Phat Farm and Baby Phat to Kellwood Company in 2004 for $140 million.

That same year, he formed the Russell Simmons Music Group as a joint venture with Universal Music’s Island Def Jam Music Group.

 

Simmons’ Vegan Advocacy

Additionally, he co-founded the Rush Philanthropic Arts Foundation and received an Honorary Doctorate Degree in Humane Letters from Claremont Lincoln University in 2014. He also coordinated the anti-Rockefeller Drug Law demonstrations promoting more equitable drug laws and was designated as the UN Slavery Memorial’s Goodwill Ambassador.

Russell is a huge PETA supporter and won the PETA Humanitarian Award in 2001 and the Person of the Year Award. The group PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) fights against animal abuse in entertainment and industry, advances vegetarianism, and defends animal rights. Many celebrities, such as Pamela Anderson, Ellen DeGeneres, and Woody Harrelson, are just a few of the figures supporting PETA.

His involvement with the NGO has influenced him to live a healthier lifestyle. He has become vegan himself and promotes the routine.

 

Signing Lil Skies And Jack Harlow

Simmons, a vegan since 1999, supports the David Lynch Foundation, which encourages activism, mindfulness, and vegetarianism; he also practices Jivamukti Yoga and Transcendental Meditation. He supports the Somaly Mam Foundation, which combats human trafficking and sexual slavery and endorses the second Muslim Jewish Conference promoting interfaith dialogue and cooperation.

In 2012, Simmons’ book “Super Rich: A Guide to Having It All” took home the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work – Non-Fiction.

To top it all off, Richtopia listed him as one of the 200 most influential social entrepreneurs and philanthropists worldwide in 2017.

Russell released the “Masterminds of Hip Hop” NFT collection alongside Snoop Dogg and Ice-T and became a senior advisor for the vegan brand Everything Legendary.

Recently, Russell has been more involved in Def Jam Records, signing up-and-coming artists such as Lil Skies, Jack Harlow, and Dreezy.

 

Estimated Net Worth

In 2024, Russell Simmons’ net worth is estimated to be roughly $340 Million. 

 

Highlights 

Here are some of the best highlights of Russell Simmons’ career:

  • Co-founded Def Jam (1983) 
  • Krush Groove (Movie, 1985) 
  • Launched Clothing Line (1992) 
  • Sold Phat Farm (2004) 

 

Summary

Russell Simmons was one of the first producers in the industry to co-found one of the most significant record labels ‘Def Jam’. Simmons has collaborated with some of the best artists, such as Jay Z and LL Cool J.

What do you think about Russell Simmons’ net worth? Leave a comment below. 

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