Author Bio
Hamid was born in Dezful, Iran to parents who could not read or write. He struggled with learning disabilities at a time and place where the condition was not understood and he was punished for them. Despite those early difficulties, he became the top student in his school.
In November 1978, as revolution spread across Iran, the U.S. Consulate in Shiraz was still issuing visas. Only one hundred remained, and an unruly crowd made it unlikely even those would be issued. A skinny seventeen-year-old climbed the consulate wall with a U.S. Marine pointing a rifle at his back and proposed a lottery to the crowd: a hundred numbers, none reserved for himself. One fell back into his hand. 89.
On January 12, 1979, he landed in Atlanta, Georgia. He spoke no English and had little money.
In Atlanta, Hamid washed dishes at night while learning English and attending school by day. He later moved to Chattanooga, Tennessee, to complete his electrical engineering degree and began waiting tables at The Loft, a 600-seat restaurant. By the age of twenty-four, he owned it. Under his leadership, The Loft became the first restaurant in the world to offer its own co-branded MasterCard, and Hamid was soon helping national companies launch programs of their own.
In 2000, he founded VIPGift, which grew to $120 million in annual sales before he sold it in 2008. He later founded EE Incentives, which ranked No. 209 on the 2019 Inc. 5000 after achieving growth of 1,952.8 percent.
Throughout his career, Hamid has invested his time and resources in giving back. He served on the board of governors of Parkridge Health Systems, the Tennessee Governor’s Workforce Development board, and the board of trustees of the T.C. Thompson Children's Hospital Foundation. He was a founding board member of the Chattanooga Area Food Bank, and endowed scholarships through Big Brothers Big Sisters for children being raised by a single parent. His honors include the Blue Chip Enterprise Award, induction into the Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame, and, in 2026, the Ellis Island Medal of Honor.
In 2027 he returns to the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga to help a new generation find the I'm Possible inside every Impossible.
Pass the spoon.
