"You could find me in the city streets" - Millionaire Kenny Wallace shares how he built a $9M fortune from humble beginnings
Kenny Wallace recently touched upon how he built his million-dollar fortune from a modest beginning. The former NASCAR driver is currently worth $9 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth. However, there was a time when he used to work as a sewer cleaner, and one could find him "in the city streets."
Wallace took a trip down memory lane in his recent "Coffee with Kenny" video on X. There, he revealed how he cashed soda bottles at 7-Eleven or McDonald's to get money and clean manholes for the same.
"Because of my early days of not having any money," Wallace said. "When I got my first money whether it's my first job repairing vacuum cleaners or cleaning sewers out, you could find me in the city streets, in St. Louis." (4:30-4:45)
The 61-year-old is the youngest of three brothers, Russ and Judy Wallace. He was not from a very wealthy background and worked himself up as a racing driver by working as a mechanic in his father's car.
He debuted in Stock car racing in 1982 in the Illinois Street Stock State Championship and won the event. Wallace then went on to make his Xfinity and Cup Series debuts in 1988 and 1990, respectively.
Kenny Wallace unfolded the secret of growing fortune
In his "Coffee with Kenny" video on X, Kenny Wallace also unraveled how he made his fortune despite him not being the best or the richest stock car driver during his time. Wallace revealed that all it took was to save his money and invest in real estate and the stock market at the perfect time.
Here's what he said:
"You know, I know a lot of NASCAR racers to this day, they were way better than me but I got lot more money than them. And here's why. Because they always felt like the money was gonna be there, because they were doing so good." (6:07-6:23)
"So, some of my closest NASCAR friends will confide in me and tell him how much money I'll have and him like 'holy crap how did you do that,' so it was pretty simple. I saved all my money, I invested in real estate, then I cashed out, sold all my real estate, and then put that money into stock market, at $19,000, and today the stock market's up to $42,000," he added. (6:24-6:52)
During his time as a Cup Series driver, Kenny Wallace made 344 appearances in the series in over 18 years, claiming three poles and 27 top 10s. He also has 547 and 13 Xfinity Series and Truck Series race appearances over the course of his NASCAR career.