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Birth
Shahid Khan was born in Pakistan on July 18, 1952 to humble parents. His father sold surveying equipment for a living, and his first job at $1.20 an hour provided him with more money than his family had made in Pakistan. -
Moving to America
In 1968 (at the age of 16) Shahid Khan came to America to attend the University of Illinois and study engineering. He joined a fraternity there, Beta Theta Pi, which was mainly white Protestant boys. He relished diversity and wasn't afraid to be different, and quickly became good friends with them. -
First Major Job
During his first year of college, Khan began working at Flex-N-Gate, a company that manufactures car bumpers. At the time, it wasn't a major company for American car manufacturers. They became revolutionary later on for their lightweight, efficient, and quality bumpers. -
Promotion
During his senior year of college, Shahid became the engineering director for Flex-N-Gate, and the company began to expand. -
Starting His Own Business
In 1978, Shahid Khan took out a $50,000 loan to start his own business. The company, Bumper Works, made bumpers for customized pickup trucks and body shop repairs. -
Buying Flex-N-Gate
In 1980, Shahid Khan bought the Flex-N-Gate company. He incorporated his Bumper Works company with Flex-N-Gate and further expanded the business. Four years later, they began supplying Toyota, a Japanese company, with their bumpers, since American car companies such as Ford were already happy with other suppliers and wouldn't buy from Flex-N-Gate. -
Another New Business
Shahid Khan started Smart Structures, a company striving to provide bridge management at a cost-effective level. It helps to make sure bridges are safe and in working order at all times to keep the public safe. -
Philanthropy
In 2007, the Khan Foundation was formed for research in Applied Health Sciences. Ann Khan, Shahid's wife, is the president, and Shahid is very involved in it. The organization also dontates to the YMCA, UCLA, and libraries. -
Jacksonville Jaguars
In 2012, Shahid Khan purchased the Jacksonville Jaguars football team for $770 million. At first, he planned to purchase the St. Louis Rams, but the man who owned 40% of the St. Louis Rams ended up purchasing the whole team. Alternately, Khan obtained the Jaguars. -
Fulham F.C.
In July 2013, Shahid Khan purchased another sports team, the Fulham F.C. soccer club. Fulham F.C. is an English team part of the Premiership League, which is arguably the best soccer league in the world. Other teams part of the league include Chelsea F.C., Manchester United F.C., and Liverpool F.C., along with more than 20 others.
