American Wendy Thomas has an estimated net worth of $100 million. Born Melinda Lou Thomas on September 14, 1961 in Columbus, Ohio, she is the fourth child of businessman Dave Thomas, the founder of the fast food brand Wendy’s. She is best known for being the namesake and mascot of the brand. Her picture appears on Wendy’s packaging and promotional materials. Her father often appeared in the brand’s ads. In1989, she was heard in one spot but not seen.

Wendy graduated from the University of Florida in 1983 with a bachelor’s degree in consumerism. She owned several Wendy’s restaurants in Texas until his father’s death in 2002. She and her siblings bought restaurants in the Columbus, Ohio area. She herself owned or co-owned more than 20 Wendy’s stores as of September 2010. In November 2010, she began appearing in ads on camera for the restaurant the first time. The ads were first aired in Las Vegas, Nevada, Mobile, Alabama, and Virginia Beach, Virginia that served as test markets before being rolled out nationally. By April 2012, she starred in a series of ads called That’s Wendy’s Way. She also appeared in the Dave’s Hot N’ Juicy Cheeseburger commercial produced by Publicis Groupe’s Kaplan Thaler Group. Aside from ownership with Wendy’s, she also serves on the board of the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption.