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Tony Hsieh, a revered internet entrepreneur who co-founded Zappos and sold the online retailer to Amazon for $ 1.2 billion, has died aged 46.
The Zappos.com homepage featured an image of Hsieh on Friday night and a letter posted by Zappos CEO Kedar Deshpande.
“It is with a very heavy heart that we share very sad news with all of you as we learned that Tony passed away earlier today (11/27/20),” Deshpande wrote. “Although Tony retired last summer, we know how huge an impact he has had on Zappos and the Zapponians as he has spent the last 20 years focusing on the success of the business and of our employees. ”
The cause of Hsieh’s death is unknown. Update: The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that Hsieh died of injuries sustained in a house fire.
“We are deeply saddened to learn of the untimely passing of Tony Hsieh, and our hearts go out to his family and friends,” an Amazon spokesperson said in a statement to GeekWire. “Tony was a visionary leader and innovator who will be sorely missed.”
Here is a statement from Amazon Consumer CEO Jeff Wilke:
I believe Tony Hsieh would like us to continue pushing each other to invent, to dream big and to be kind to each other. Along with so many others, I will cherish the memories he worked so determinedly to create.
– Jeff Wilke (@jeffawilke) November 28, 2020
Hsieh has led Zappos since its launch in 1999. The company struggled in its early days, but Hsieh helped grow the company into an online footwear and apparel giant that sold to Amazon in 2009. Zappos is become known for his unique culture, focusing on the “science of happiness,” experimenting with corporate structure and customer obsession – something Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos admired.
“The world has lost a great visionary and an incredible human being,” wrote Deshpande, a longtime Zappos employee who took over from Hsieh as CEO. “We recognize that not only have we lost our inspiring former leader, but many of you have also lost a mentor and friend. Tony played such an important role in building the successful Zappos business we have today, as well as his passion for helping to support and animate our corporate culture.
Hsieh resigned as CEO last August.
Tony Hsieh is perhaps the most original thinker I have ever been friends with. He questioned every assumption and shared everything he learned along the way. He was really happy to make everyone happy. The earth has lost a wonderfully strange and helpful person. TEAR
– Chris Sacca ?? (@sacca) November 28, 2020
Amazon first tried to buy Zappos in 2005, as Hsieh detailed in a 2010 article. Bezos and Hsieh began trading again in 2009 and agreed to an acquisition that would allow Zappos to continue to operate independently. . The acquisition remains one of Amazon’s largest to date, eclipsed only by the tech giant’s purchase of Whole Foods and Ring.
“From our perspective, it’s basically like we’ve replaced our old board with a new one,” Hsieh said in an interview in 2014. “On top of that, we have access to all of this free technology from Amazon. ”
Prior to launching Zappos, Hsieh co-founded and sold an advertising startup called LinkExchange to Microsoft for $ 265 million.
Tony Hsieh, my partner and co-founder of LinkExchange, has passed away. Tony, I miss you. ❤️ You were among the most creative people I have known. I will remember your unique combination of genius and mischief, and your infuriating ability to bet against the odds and win. https://t.co/rI9unaHWDW
– Ali Partovi (@apartovi) November 28, 2020
Tony’s first startup, LinkExchange (1996-1999) was @Alfred_Lin, @apartoviand Scott Banister all started their careers in tech. A young Mike Moritz was their VC. @mlevchin was their intern. LinkExchange was purchased by Microsoft and operated by @satyanadella.
– Hadi Partovi (@hadip) November 28, 2020
Hsieh published a book in 2013 titled Offer happiness: a path to profits, passion and purpose, a New York Times bestseller that details lessons learned in life and business during his entrepreneurial journey. Hsieh believed that corporate culture can help promote employee happiness.
“What’s interesting is that research has shown that if employees are happier and customers are happier and there is a strong company culture, it drives business results and these companies tend to outperform. long-term peers, ”Hsieh said in an interview with The Colbert Report in 2011.
Hsieh also created a $ 350 million initiative in 2009 called the Las Vegas Downtown Project to help transform downtown Las Vegas into a hub for entrepreneurs and innovators.
Tony Hsieh has played a pivotal role in the transformation of downtown Las Vegas. Kathy and I send our love and condolences to Tony’s family and friends during this difficult time https://t.co/7TXBUDWZe0
– Governor Sisolak (@GovSisolak) November 28, 2020
Here is Deshpande’s full letter and other tributes shared online Friday:
It is with a very heavy heart that we share a very sad news with all of you as we learned that Tony passed away earlier today (11/27/20). Although Tony retired last summer, we know how huge an impact he has had on Zappos and the Zapponians, as he has devoted the past 20 years to focusing on the success of the business and our employees.
The world has lost a great visionary and an amazing human being. We recognize that not only have we lost our inspiring former leader, but many of you have also lost a mentor and friend. Tony was instrumental in building the thriving Zappos business we have today, as well as his passion for helping to support and fuel our corporate culture.
Tony’s kindness and generosity touched the lives of everyone around him, as his mantra was to “Deliver Happiness” to others. His spirit will forever be a part of Zappos, and we will continue to honor his memory as we dedicate ourselves to carrying on the work he was so passionate about.
We’ll be working on ways to celebrate Tony’s extraordinary life in the coming days. In the meantime, we invite you to share your memories of how he brightened your life – you can send them to [email protected] and we’ll share them with his family.
Our thoughts remain with him and his loved ones. Zappos is family and we will continue to keep Tony in our hearts.
Regards,
Kedar Deshpande
CEO of Zappos
Zappos customer service was amazing. Link Exchange had an inspiring business model. Holacracy was a daring experiment. DTP had an ambitious vision. Grateful for the creative leadership of Tony Hsieh
– Ellen K. Pao (@ekp) November 28, 2020
RIP Tony Hsieh
“Happiness is actually about four things: perceived control, perceived progress, connectedness (number and depth of your relationships), and vision / meaning (being part of something bigger than yourself). ” pic.twitter.com/rCIln3OP4h
– Garry Tan (@garrytan) November 28, 2020
It was always surprising to hear how zappos employees were treated – not only financially but creatively – and how this priority was incorporated into the organization of the company. zappos is / was well known in SV for reinventing the corporate culture.
tony hsieh has proven that empathy is scalable. https://t.co/lQpLHrFLvM
– TALIA JANE (@itsa_talia) November 28, 2020
If you don’t know Hsieh or Zappos, read Delivering Happiness. It is one of the best business books ever written. Hsieh has not “revolutionized the shoe business” as being tossed about now. He changed the view of what online shopping and leadership could be.
– Mikael Pawlo ? (@mpawlo) November 28, 2020
Here’s a little Tony Hsieh for you.
First, the customer service email he wrote to my wife (and 13,000 others) after their orders were a day late … and in which he suggests calling customer service and ask them to sing I’m a Little Teacup… 1/2 pic.twitter.com/ix1Bds1syO
– Jason Rapp (@jasonrapp) November 28, 2020
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