David Tran, 77, founded Huy Fong Foods in southern California after fleeing Vietnam in 1978 with his wife and son, with his life savings of $20,000 worth of gold hidden in cans of condensed milk.

He is the sole owner of Huy Fong, which was recently valued at $1 billion by research firm IBISWorld, based on estimated sales of $131 million in 2020.