Meet Raising Cane’s founder Todd Graves, who spent US$100 million on a Fifa World Cup party

There is no shortage of regular star-studded events in Hollywood, from brand gatherings to birthday celebrations and award show after-parties. But who would have guessed that the parties stars are really trying to get into are held by a multibillionaire with a fried chicken finger empire.

Raising Cane’s founder Todd Graves, who Forbes estimated to be worth US$22 billion, is overshadowing tried-and-true events with his own parties, and according to Page Six, celebrities are now dying to get on his guest list.

So, who is the 54-year-old fried chicken entrepreneur hosting some of the most high-profile events in Hollywood? Here is what we know.

What is Todd Graves’ background?

Todd Bartlett Graves was born in February 1972, in New Orleans, Louisiana, and raised in Baton Rouge. He attended the Episcopal School of Baton Rouge and graduated from the University of Georgia in 1994 with a bachelor’s degree of arts.

How did Raising Cane’s come about?

Named after Graves’ yellow Labrador, Cane, the restaurant was initially envisioned for college students. Graves partnered with his friend, Craig Silvey, and used Silvey’s business plan course at Louisiana State University (LSU) to test their idea, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Their pitch received a C-minus, with the professor telling them that a restaurant serving only chicken fingers would never succeed in South Louisiana, where bold, flavourful Cajun food was all the rage.

After being turned down by multiple banks for financing, Graves raised his own funds by working as a refinery boilermaker and a salmon fisherman. The pair opened their first restaurant near the LSU campus in 1996, and since then, they have expanded to around 900 locations across the US. They also have a number of international outlets, including Kuwait, Dubai and Saudi Arabia.