Fast Lane Owner Inducted Into Ky. Hall of Fame

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The Kentucky Entrepreneur Hall of Fame inducted James Booth, owner of 19 Fast Lane convenience stores and chief executive of Booth Energy Group, as part of its 2014 class. The Nov. 19 ceremony was held at the Mellwood Arts and Entertainment Center in Louisville.

Booth's business ventures also include 10 fast-food restaurants, Car City LLC, Elite Insurance, R&J Building Supply, and more. In his early career, he co-founded his first contract mining company following the coal boom of the late 1970s.

Booth served as chairman of the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce in 2013.

The Hall of Fame's mission is to raise awareness of the impact that entrepreneurship has made in Kentucky and to encourage others to pursue similar ambitious endeavors, according to the organization's website.

Other 2014 inductees are Ulysses Lee "Junior" Bridgeman of Bridgeman Foods Inc., which owns and operates 160 Wendy's restaurant franchises across the country; Chris Sullivan, founder and former chairman and CEO of Outback Steakhouse; and John A. Williams Sr., founder and chairman of Computer Services Inc.

The Hall of Fame ceremony also recognized emerging entrepreneurs, including Ankur Gopal, CEO of mobile development and strategy firm Interapt; Jennifer Mackin, CEO of business development firm The Oliver Group; and Nate Morris, founder of waste and recycling services company Rubicon Global.