In 1961, Howard Shultz was seven years old. His father lost his job. Howard’s pregnant mother couldn’t work. Without income or savings, the family had to borrow money to make ends meet. Howard grew up in Brooklyn’s Bayview Projects. He pursued various jobs from a young age. After high school, he attended Northern Michigan University on a football scholarship.Upon graduation in 1975, he worked at Xerox. There he excelled at selling word processors...

In 1977, British television and radio banned the Sex Pistols’ single, God Save The Queen. It sold 100,000 copies. It’s a critical and rebellious song aimed at the British monarchy and Queen Elizabeth II. The song caused controversy due to its anti-establishment lyrics. Virgin Records released the album that November. Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols was the only studio album from the Sex Pistols. The band imploded.

To put Mike’s mind at ease, Richard offered to take him for a drive in his Bentley. They drove past the Queen Elizabeth Hall when Richard slowed down. There were Mike Oldfield posters everywhere. A crowd of people were making their way to the concert. Richard stopped the car. “Do you want to drive?” he asked. He knew Mike loved that car. “Alright,” Mike agreed. Mike drove Richard’s Bentley further. Then Richard asked, “Would you like to have this car as a present?” “A present?” Mike wondered....

“The music business is a strange combination of having real and intangible assets. Pop bands are brand names in themselves. At different stages in their careers, their name alone can practically guarantee hit records. It’s also an industry where the very few successful bands are very, very rich, and the bulk of bands remain obscure and impoverished. The rock business is a prime example of the most ruthless kind of capitalism.” – Richard Branson, Losing and Finding My Virginity: The Full Story...

Virgin Mail Order faced a crisis with no way to send records or receive payments. Postal workers were on strike. To avoid running out of money in a week, Richard Branson decided to open a physical record shop. He had no experience in running one. He found a location on Oxford Street in London. The building’s owner sold shoes out of the storefront. The owner agreed to provide the upstairs space for free. The arrangement would attract customers for both businesses. Within days, Virgin’s first reco

Starting your own airline can be a challenge. This would be his “what if I could” moment. The airport terminal was full of stranded passengers. Sir Richard Charles Nicholas Branson was one of them. His lover was waiting for him. Making a few calls to charter companies, one of them agreed to take him to the British Virgin Islands. It would cost him £2,000. He divided the price by the number of seats on the plane. Then he made a sign that read, “Virgin Airways $39 single flight”...

In 1966, Sam Walton's small team was generating $10 million yearly from a few stores. But they lacked the expertise for larger operations. To address this, Walton hired Ferold Arend as VP of operations. Walmart needed better inventory and logistics systems. Walton learned about computer technology at an IBM school. This led to the adoption of IBM’s System/360 for daily sales reporting. In 1968, Sam Walton appointed Ron Mayer as VP of Finance and Distribution. Under his guidance, Walmart implemen

Sam Walton’s franchiser, Butler Brothers, rejected him. This pain fueled determination to create his own discount retail chain. Sam had no sophisticated systems, processes, or organization. He focused on offering merchandise at the lowest possible prices. Selling a product for next to nothing is a counterintuitive way to make a profit. That tactic only works under the following circumstances. Your product attracts attention and customers buy additional products. Walmart had an unsophisticated bu

Sam Walton faced a significant setback. He lost the lease to his successful Ben Franklin store due to not having a renewal clause. His landlord pressured him into selling. Learning from this, he sold his smaller department store. With his wife Helen, he left Newport for Bentonville. There, he innovated retail with a self-service model in his new variety store. Which became the foundation for Walmart. Sam and his brother Bud went all-in on a Ben Franklin franchise. It served as the anchor for a s

Sam Walton opened a Ben Franklin variety store franchise in 1945. He engaged in fierce competition with the Sterling store across the street. His main tactic was undercutting prices on items like ladies’ underwear. Sam Walton innovated by buying direct from manufacturers. Thereby saving 25% and passing those savings to customers. Which laid the groundwork for Walmart’s business model. It was against the rules not to buy wholesale from his franchisor. Sam went around them, buying direct from alte