22 MARCH 2025 By Kylie de Best Arcadia High School class of 2004 graduates may remember Codie Sanchez as one of their classmates. Newspaper readers may recall her name from poignant stories about human trafficking or financial crises across America. Her parents just know her as Codie. What does Codie want people want people want to know her for? Finance – and more specifically, how to achieve financial freedom. After high school, she studied journalism at ASU, covering heavy topics like cartel violence in Juarez, Mexico. “Covering that that taught me stories matter but that money changes trajectories,” Codie said. “Journalism taught me to ask why, while finance taught me the ‘how.’” After ASU, Codie headed to Wall Street and her first job at Vanguard during the 2008 financial crash. She then worked at Goldman Sachs, and after two decades, realized that finance could become a weapon. This prompted her to launch Contrarian Thinking, a finance and media company that’s “empowered thousands to take control of their destinies and become successful small business owners.” That was in 2020. A few years later, it was time for Codie to find yet another way to help people achieve financial success. Enter Main Street Millionaire . In the book, Codie combines the why and the how with real-life experiences to teach people how to build wealth through ownership. “ Main Street Millionaire “ Main Street Millionaire “ is about flipping the script on wealth creation,” she said. “It’s not about Silicon Valley unicorns or 80-hour weeks. It’s about buying ‘boring,’ cash-flowing businesses that white-collar folks ignore, like laundromats, plumbing companies, or janitorial services. These are the backbone of our economy, yet they’re undervalued because they’re not ‘sexy.’” Codie’s parents – a special education teacher and an entrepreneur – taught her that “ownership is power.” Armed with this knowledge, she realized financial literacy isn’t a luxury; it’s survival, and her book has become a “playbook for ordinary people to build generational wealth through unsexy assets.” She describes the writing process as “birthing a bulldog – messy and painful, but worth it.” Though she’s spent years sharing knowledge through Contrarian Thinking, books demand precision, so she had to figure out how to be actionable and intentional with each chapter. In Main Street Millionaire , Codie pulls from real experiences, such as the laundromat and landscaping company she and her team turned into ‘cash machines.’ “The hardest part about writing this book was cutting the jargon so it appeals to everyone. Wall Street loves complexity; Main Street needs simplicity,” she said. “I wrote this for my 25-year-old self, the journalist who thought wealth was for others.” Codie’s future plans include writing more books and buying more car washes – in between traveling for presentations, appearing on television and recording for her podcast, “The Big Deal Podcast with Codie Sanchez.” Contrarian Thinking is launching a marketplace to connect buyers with vetted “Main Street” businesses. “My biggest vision is to make ‘entrepreneur’ a normal career choice. Stop waiting for perfect. And join a community – wealth isn’t built alone. Lastly, embrace the grind. My dad said, ‘You’re not in the game until you’re sitting in the dark, head in hands, wondering what to do next.’ That’s where magic happens,” Codie said. “Now, go buy something that matters.” codiesanchez.com PHOTO COURTESY OF LAURIE SANCHEZ From 48th Street to Wall Street to Main Street Millionaire Codie Sanchez owns a successful financial business and is a recently published author. FREE ADMISSION FOR LOOKERS & SPECTATORS! Exhibitor Registration Fee (donation): $20 with advance sign up $30 on event day at the gate. Trophy Classes Include: Best Classic Car, Best Truck, Best in Show, Best Muscle Car, Best Sports Car, plus more. Sunday, March 23, 2025 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. Hopi Elementary School 5110 E. Lafayette Blvd., Phoenix AZ 85018 Details at www.ACMNA.org/events Sponsored by: Sponsored by: Sponsored by: 7th Annual 7th Annual