Chick-fil-A founder S. Truett Cathy marked the release of his book "Wealth: Is It Worth It?" with a wide-ranging discussion about debt, long marriage, philanthropy and getting a good deal on clothes.
Cathy, 90, doesn't ride motorcycles anymore and has turned over control of day-to-day operations at Chick-fil-A to his sons. But he showed up to a lunch Wednesday at the Metro Atlanta Chamber looking tanned.
"I'm planning to be here forever, but I know at some point I'll probably have to give it up," he said. Then he cracked a joke: "If you live to 100, there's a very good chance you'll live forever. Because very few people die after 100."
Forbes Magazine estimates Cathy's wealth at $1.8 billion. Chick-fil-A has annual sales of more than $3.5 billion, with more than 1,500 locations.
In a question-and-answer session, Cathy touted Chick-fil-A's efforts to avoid long-term debt, and likened it to his practice of paying cash for property and automobiles.
"In the Great Depression, you bought something if you had the cash to buy it," Cathy said. "We are just about debt-free right now, stretching that dollar as far as it will go. If you have debt, you have to worry about it. I would challenge each of you to try to be debt-free."
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