Sardar Biglari

In 1996, Biglari founded the internet service provider INTX. Networking, which he sold to Internet America in 1999. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree with a concentration in finance and international business from Trinity University.⁠[1][1]

In 2000, Biglari became chairman and chief executive officer of Biglari Capital Corp. Biglari Capital is the general partner of the private investment partnership The Lion Fund, which was established in 2000; as of March 2026, Biglari Capital was also the general partner of The Lion Fund II.⁠[1][2]

In March 2006, Biglari became chairman of the steak and buffet restaurant chain Western Sizzlin, and from May 2007 he also served as its chief executive officer and president; as of February 2008, Western Sizzlin operated and franchised approximately 122 locations.⁠[1]

In early 2008, a shareholder group led by Biglari, including The Lion Fund, Biglari Capital, and Western Sizzlin, which together held approximately 8.5% of The Steak n Shake Company, launched a proxy contest nominating Biglari and Philip L. Cooley for election as directors (The Lion Fund had delivered a nomination letter to the company on August 16, 2007), citing deteriorating operational performance, excessive general and administrative spending, broken strategic initiatives, and faulty capital allocation. Biglari was 30 at the time, and the contested proxy statement stated that both nominees were citizens of the United States.⁠[1][1][1][1][1][1]

Biglari was elected a director at the 2008 annual meeting of shareholders, was elected executive chairman in June of that year, and became chief executive officer in August.⁠[3]

The Steak n Shake Company was later renamed Biglari Holdings Inc., with Biglari as chairman and chief executive officer, also leading Steak n Shake, Western Sizzlin, and Biglari Capital. On March 30, 2010, Biglari Holdings acquired 100% of the equity of Western Sizzlin under a merger agreement signed on October 22, 2009.⁠[4][4][4]

At Cracker Barrel’s annual meeting of shareholders on December 20, 2011, Biglari failed to win election as a director with 6,646,692 votes; Biglari Holdings and its affiliates withheld 2,284,164 votes for each of the other 10 company nominees. At the same meeting, the company’s shareholder rights plan was rejected.⁠[5][5][5][5][5]

At Cracker Barrel’s annual meeting of shareholders on November 15, 2012, Biglari and Philip L. Cooley received 5,631,605 and 5,632,068 votes, respectively, and neither was elected; Biglari Holdings and its affiliates withheld 4,091,037 votes for each of eight company nominees.⁠[6][6][6][6]

On April 30, 2018, Biglari Holdings completed a reorganization after which it had two classes of common stock, Class A and Class B: every ten shares of the old common stock converted into ten Class B shares and one Class A share, and Class B shares have no voting rights and economic rights equivalent to one-fifth of a Class A share; both classes have traded on the New York Stock Exchange since May 1.⁠[7][7][7][7][7]

Shareholders sued in the Superior Court of Hamilton County, Indiana, alleging that the board had breached its fiduciary duties and that Biglari had been unjustly enriched by the dual-class structure. The court dismissed the suits on December 14, 2018; the Indiana Court of Appeals unanimously affirmed the dismissal on December 4, 2019, and the Indiana Supreme Court denied transfer on April 7, 2020.⁠[7][8][8][8]

On March 9, 2020, Biglari Holdings acquired Southern Pioneer Property & Casualty Insurance Company and its affiliated agency. On September 14, 2022, the company purchased Series A preferred stock of Abraxas Petroleum for $80 million, and on October 26 exchanged it for 90% of Abraxas Petroleum’s common stock.⁠[9][9][9]

At Cracker Barrel’s annual meeting of shareholders on November 21, 2024, Biglari’s nominee Milena Alberti-Perez and Biglari himself received 3,540,923 and 3,192,413 votes, respectively, and neither was elected. The company’s proxy solicitor, Okapi, determined that Biglari-affiliated entities voted approximately 2 million shares against the advisory proposal on executive compensation and against the company’s shareholder rights agreement; both proposals were nonetheless approved.⁠[10][10][10][10][10][10]

In October 2025, the Biglari group, which held approximately 2.9% of Cracker Barrel’s shares, issued a contested proxy statement urging shareholders at the November 20 annual meeting to vote against the re-election of chief executive officer Julie Masino and Compensation Committee chair Gilbert Dávila. The Biglari group argued that the board had disregarded accountability, said Dávila bore direct responsibility for the failures, and called the company’s “brand refresh” one of this century’s worst brand blunders; it also said the board had spent $31 million of shareholders’ money to prevent one of its largest shareholders from having a minority voice.⁠[11][11][11][11][11][11][11]

The vote results showed Dávila receiving 6,716,130 votes for and 9,570,461 against; he was not elected and resigned as a director on November 20, 2025, and the board was reduced from ten to nine members. Masino was elected with 12,130,721 votes for and 4,116,283 against.⁠[12][12][12][12][12]

As of the end of 2025, Biglari Holdings’ businesses spanned property and casualty insurance and reinsurance, licensing and media, restaurants, and oil and gas, with subsidiaries including Steak n Shake, Western Sizzlin, First Guard, Southern Pioneer, Biglari Reinsurance, Maxim, Southern Oil, and Abraxas Petroleum, and 2,359 employees; Steak n Shake and Western Sizzlin had a combined 435 units. The fair value of the company’s investment in the two Lion Fund partnerships was $772.6 million. Biglari makes all major investment and capital allocation decisions for the company and its subsidiaries.⁠[13][13][2][13][13][13][13]

The March 2026 proxy statement listed Biglari as 48 years old and showed that, as of February 26, 2026, he beneficially held 73.1% of the voting power of the company’s Class A shares and a 69.4% economic interest across both classes, with the Class A shares held directly by The Lion Fund and Biglari Capital. His annual salary has been $900,000 since 2009, and he has said he does not want it increased.⁠[2][2][2][2]

Biglari Holdings: Official website: https://www.biglariholdings.com/ (opens in a new window).⁠[13]