Hamdi Ulukaya CEO, Chobani LLC - “The men and women we work with are the reason we exist”

Fifteen years ago, the Chobani founder bought a shuttered dairy factory and began making Greek-style yogurt. His privately held company now earns more than $1.5 billion in annual revenue—all while distinguishing itself as a champion of Good Business. Here, Ulukaya explains his magic formula to Bloomberg Businessweek Editor Joel Weber.

- Joel Weber

JOEL WEBER: Hamdi, you’re a Turkish Kurd who came to the U.S. and became a billionaire selling Greek yogurt to Americans. What other food could have taken you on such a journey? HAMDI ULUKAYA: I cannot imagine anything that could replace the magic of yogurt, which transcends cultures and lands. Tea, maybe? And what is it about yogurt?

I go back to my childhood in Turkey. That’s where this journey started. It didn’t matter if you were poor or rich, you couldn’t imagine a table without yogurt. It’s something that represents equality, nature, nutrition. I always missed it when I got here— living in upstate New York, I always thought, “Where is that yogurt? It can’t be so hard to make.” And I was also sad that such a simple food was absent on kitchen tables here in the U.S. This has been such a challenging year. What lessons have guided you?