How Mr. Beast Built a Multi-Billion Dollar Empire — From YouTube to Restaurants

MrBeast’s wealth is impressive: nearly half a billion dollars according to Forbes estimates. This content creator is not just making videos but creating a full-fledged business conglomerate. Over the past few years, Donaldson(, the real name of the YouTube star), has twice in a row ranked among the most profitable YouTubers on the planet. In 2021, he earned about $54 million from his main content, and forecasts for 2022 suggested the possibility of doubling that amount to $110 million.

Interestingly, in 2022, he considered selling a stake in his content studio. If that deal had gone through, the valuation of his main asset would have reached $1.5 billion. Donaldson himself shared his philosophy of success: “Paradoxically, the path to a billion-dollar fortune often opens to those who do not focus solely on the goal itself. You need to focus on creating a truly quality company.” His professionalism is so high that he received an invitation to give a lecture at Harvard Business School.

Media Empire: Several Channels, One Genius

MrBeast is not limited to a single channel. His portfolio includes a whole network of YouTube projects. The main channel, MrBeast, has gathered 142 million subscribers. Simultaneously, other channels include Beast Reacts (22.5 million), MrBeast Shorts (21.5 million), Beast Philanthropy (12.6 million), MrBeast Gaming (32 million), and MrBeast 2 (21.5 million).

All these projects are created in the small town of Greenville, where Donaldson grew up. Here is a studio that is constantly expanding and transforming into three major production centers. MrBeast’s long-term plan is ambitious: he wants Greenville to become an attractive hub for other content creators who will move their studios there. Currently, the team numbers about fifty people — scriptwriters, editors, assistants. Key staff are friends and relatives of Donaldson, who believed in his project even at the dawn of the channel’s existence.

From Virtual Orders to Physical Restaurants

In December 2020, MrBeast announced entering the fast-food segment. He rented a small eatery in Greenville and conducted an experiment — opening a point with free food. The menu included burgers, fries, sweet desserts, and drinks. At the opening, car queues stretched over 30 km.

The MrBeast Burger network quickly scaled and today includes over 300 locations across the USA and several international sites. The secret to this rapid expansion lies in an innovative model: it is a virtual restaurant. Orders are accepted exclusively through a mobile app, and preparation takes place in partner offline cafes under an agreement with the brand. In the first three months of operation, the network sold over a million burgers. In August 2022, MrBeast opened his first full offline restaurant.

Feastables Snacks: Chocolate and Cookies as Products

MrBeast’s wealth development continued through a line of food products. He started selling MrBeast Bar (chocolate) and MrBeast Cookies via online channels and Walmart stores. The launch in January 2022 was accompanied by an ambitious marketing campaign: a sweepstakes with cash prizes, a contest for those who found one of ten golden tickets in chocolate packaging. The final contest involved making desserts under the critical eye of the famous chef Gordon Ramsay. The winning participant received a chocolate factory as a prize, reminiscent of Willy Wonka’s story.

According to Business Insider, in the first months after launch, the Feastables brand sold snacks worth over $10 million. This is yet another proof that MrBeast’s wealth is growing not only through video content but also thanks to diversification into related industries with huge potential.