Product Description

What do Bill Gates, Henry Ford, J. P. Morgan, Mary Kay Ash, and Walt Disney all have in common? Uncompromising vision, a willingness to take risks, and exceptional business acumen. Not only did these individuals amass great fortunes, they revolutionized the business world and helped shape society as we know it. Theirs are just a few of the stories collected in this anthology of commercial ingenuity.

Drawing on a wealth of sources, this priceless collection brings to life extraordinary achievements, many of them forgotten or little known: how Robert Morris, the preeminent merchant of the eighteenth century, financed the American Revolution with his personal credit; how Ray Kroc used a shrewd real estate strategy to turn a faltering hamburger franchise operation into the McDonald′s fast food empire; and how Mary Kay Ash built a billion–dollar direct sales cosmetics company by preaching a message of economic empowerment to women.

Enlightening and fascinating, Forbes(r) Greatest Business Stories of All Time celebrates larger–than–life ambition, inspired leadership, wheeling and dealing, and hard work.

Forbes is a registered trademark of Forbes Inc. Its use is pursuant to a license agreement with Forbes Inc.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #54037 in Books
• Published on: 1997-09-03
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 368 pages

From the Inside Flap
What do Bill Gates, Henry Ford, J. P. Morgan, Mary Kay Ash, and Wait Disney have in common? Uncompromising vision, a willingness to take risks, and exceptional business acumen. Not only did these individuals amass great fortunes, they revolutionized the business world and helped shape society as we know it. While most of us have a general knowledge of these and other legendary figures, few know the details of their exceptional careers. Daniel Gross and the Editors of Forbes magazine, one of the world′s foremost business publications, present twenty fascinating stories. You′ll meet the personalities behind some of the best–known name brands in history, including McDonald′s, Harley–Davidson, RCA, Merrill Lynch, Xerox, Wal–Mart, and Standard Oil, among others. Forbes Greatest Business Stories of All Time draws on a wealth of sources to offer this priceless collection. The book brings to life extraordinary achievements, many of them forgotten or little known: how Robert Morris, the preeminent merchant of the eighteenth century, financed the American Revolution with his personal credit; how Ray Kroc used a shrewd real estate strategy to turn a faltering hamburger franchise operation into a fast–food Empire; and how Mary Kay Ash built a billion–dollar direct sales cosmetics company by preaching a message of economic empowerment to women. Covering industries ranging from oil to cosmetics, from the eighteenth century up to the present, Forbes Greatest Business Stories of All Time celebrates larger–than–life ambition, inspired leadership, wheeling and dealing, and hard work. These tales are as entertaining as they are informative–an essential tool for business enthusiasts and anyone interested in how our modern commercial culture was built. Forbes Magazine Founded in 1917, Forbes has brought the nation′s greatest business stories to readers for more than three quarters of a century. The magazine′s unique brand of hard–hitting reporting, challenging the conventional wisdom, has made Forbes must–reading for successful executives. Published biweekly, every issue contains more than 50 concise, original stories, written from a top manager′s perspective, about companies and the people who run them.

From the Back Cover
What do Bill Gates, Henry Ford, J. P. Morgan, Mary Kay Ash, and Walt Disney all have in common? Uncompromising vision, a willingness to take risks, and exceptional business acumen. Not only did these individuals amass great fortunes, they revolutionized the business world and helped shape society as we know it. Theirs are just a few of the stories collected in this anthology of commercial ingenuity.

Drawing on a wealth of sources, this priceless collection brings to life extraordinary achievements, many of them forgotten or little known: how Robert Morris, the preeminent merchant of the eighteenth century, financed the American Revolution with his personal credit; how Ray Kroc used a shrewd real estate strategy to turn a faltering hamburger franchise operation into the McDonald′s fast food empire; and how Mary Kay Ash built a billion–dollar direct sales cosmetics company by preaching a message of economic empowerment to women.

Enlightening and fascinating, Forbes(r) Greatest Business Stories of All Time celebrates larger–than–life ambition, inspired leadership, wheeling and dealing, and hard work.

Forbes is a registered trademark of Forbes Inc. Its use is pursuant to a license agreement with Forbes Inc.

About the Author
DANIEL GROSS is a Harvard–trained historian and journalist.

Customer Reviews

Informative but boring to read
I don't consider the material very interesting to read. They are facts not stories. The material could be written better.

Wonderfully readable portraits of great entrepreneurs.
For anyone with even a casual interest in business, Daniel Gross's book offers a wonderfully readable set of prose portraits of some of history's great entrepreneurs.

Inspirational tales of the Giants of Industry
This book gives a phenomenal review of the challenge that the industrial griants of our country have faced and how they have overcome them. It beautifully describes the triumph of will experienced from business leaders of all kinds from Ford to Gates. This is a book for anyone who plans on being the next billionare of the 21st century.