Long Island Woman Opens Burger Franchise At Only Age 22

WEST HEMPSTEAD, NY—A Nassau County woman made corporate history when she became the youngest-ever franchisee of restaurant chain Wayback Burgers.

Amanda Jane Porco is a West Hempstead resident and is only 22 years old. She recently purchased the Wayback Burgers location at 512 Hempstead Turnpike.

Porco tells Patch that the idea to buy the business began as a joke when she was only 16.

"At 16 I was too young to work here—they were only looking for 18 and over— so it started as a joke that if they wouldn’t hire me I’d just buy it. Then at 18 I was given a job at Wayback where I worked my way up to manager."

The store closed during the pandemic but Porco was there reopening day and she says working there for years made it an easy, obvious choice.

"I already lived what I was doing and knew what it took to make it run."

Finding the money to buy the franchise was a combination of hard work and fortuitous circumstances, Porco explained.

"When I was a baby my great-grandfather had given me some money before he had passed which my mom then put into a 529 savings account. Over the years it had grown and I never touched it."

Her parents helped round out the funds with a small loan, and Porco saved her earnings and even added on a side job delivering for Instacart.

"At 21 years old I didn’t want to buy the store if I couldn’t afford it on my own but my parents sat me down at explained to me that everyone needs a little help."

The entire endeavor has been a family effort for Porco. Her grandfather always loved the chain, which used to be called Jake's Burgers and has retro-inspired burgers, milkshakes, onion rings and hot dogs.

“After I became manager, I convinced my mom, brother and my brother’s friend to join the team so I could train them to work under, and eventually, for me. I love working alongside my family," Porco said.

As for being the boss at an age most people are graduating college or starting a career, the young entrepreneur says it can be a challenge to be taken seriously. But she's not too worried about her abilities.

"Most don’t realize I was that reliable manager taking care of things when the owner wasn’t here."