About Michael Amin

Michael Amin came to the United States in 1976 at the age of 17 as an international student. He first enrolled at Pepperdine University in Malibu, later switching to Cal State Northridge, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business. While still in college, he managed his family’s apartment complex, eventually transforming it into condominiums which were then sold on the open market.

Soon after graduation, he embraced his entrepreneurial instincts and founded QuickPix One Hour Photo, one of the very first film development companies in the country. His ultimate aim was to franchise the business, but the market for rapid film development soon became too saturated to be tenable. Michael Amin then went on to found two new companies; Primex Talking Yellow Pages and Top Attorneys Directory.

In 1988, alongside his family, he developed his first pistachio farm, becoming a fourth-generation pistachio farmer. Soon after, he founded Primex World Inc., a Los Angeles-based investment firm. The firm has since accumulated a portfolio that includes pistachio orchards, other types of agricultural real estate, as well as private equity funds of all kinds. He remains the CEO of the company to this day.

In the wake of his success in the business world, Michael Amin made a conscious decision to use his considerable resources and influence to try to make the world a better place. As a means of achieving this goal, in 2002, he founded Maximum Difference Foundation (MDF), a multifaceted charitable and humanitarian organization. One focus of MDF is to harness the power of advertising to motivate parents to educate themselves in the art and science of good parenting, laying the groundwork for stronger families and more cohesive communities. But this is by means its only focus. The foundation also addresses a wide variety of other worthy causes, as well.

In the realm of healthcare, MDF has partnered with Doctors without Borders, Umma Relief International, IAMA (Iranian American Medical Association), the National MS Society, PACI (Persian American Cancer Institute), and Vibrant America.

In the realm of environmentalism, MDF has partnered with H2OMA, an organization that combats deforestation by planting trees on a large scale.

In the realm of criminal justice reform, MDF has partnered with the Innocence Project, an organization that works to prevent wrongful convictions and facilitate a more fair, compassionate, and equitable justice system.

In the realm of education, MDF has partnered with the Omid Foundation, APSIH (Association of Professors & Scholars of Iranian Heritage), as well as investing a considerable amount into homeless vocational training.

In the realm of human rights and humanitarian aid, MDF has partnered with Amnesty International, the Center for Constitutional Rights, Human Rights Watch, Jewish Voices for Peace, Middle East Children Alliance, American Near East Refugee Aid, and The Toy Foundation, an organization that strives to be the uniting force for the collective philanthropy of the toy industry in order to benefit children in need.

Michael Amin is also active in other aspects of the nonprofit world, notably serving on the Board of Trustees of the Farhang Foundation, an organization whose central goal is to promote and celebrate Iranian art and culture. He also currently serves on the Board of Trustees for Vasht, an organization whose mandate is to celebrate and promote the arts and cultures of ancient civilizations.