* Ortega keeps a very low profile and there are practically no photographs of him (except from one photo published at the Inditex website). He refuses to wear a tie, and likes to dress in blue jeans and T-shirts. He is said to take a very active part in the production and design process in the company.
* When he made a public appearance in 2000 - as part of the warm-up prior to floating his company on the stock market in 2001 - it made headlines in the Spanish financial press. However, he has never given an interview, and his secrecy has led to the publication of books such as Amancio Ortega: DE CERO A ZARA (From Zero to Zara)
* With then-wife Rosalia Mera, also now a billionaire, started making dressing gowns and lingerie in their living room.
* At the age of 13, Ortega began working for a shirtmaker as a delivery boy in La Coruna, Galicia, the center of the Iberian textile industry. He worked for a variety of stores and tailors and studied how products and costs changed as they traveled from the manufacturer to the consumer. As a result, he became focused on the importance of getting products directly to the consumer without a middle man.
* Zara is renowned for the speed with which it is able to respond to changing fashions - normally, a matter of a few weeks - and it does this by keeping the manufacture of its clothes at home, rather than outsourcing to sweatshops in low-cost countries.
* although he avoids the financial intricacies of the publicly traded company, he still enjoys designing and working with the details of fashion.
Highlights
* At the age of 13, Ortega began working for a shirtmaker as a delivery boy in La Coruna, Galicia, the center of the Iberian textile industry. He worked for a variety of stores and tailors and studied how products and costs changed as they traveled from the manufacturer to the consumer. As a result, he became focused on the importance of getting products directly to the consumer without a middle man.
* Zara is renowned for the speed with which it is able to respond to changing fashions - normally, a matter of a few weeks - and it does this by keeping the manufacture of its clothes at home, rather than outsourcing to sweatshops in low-cost countries.
* Although he avoids the financial intricacies of the publicly traded company, he still enjoys designing and working with the details of fashion.
==OBSERVING OPPORTUNITIES ALONG THE BUSINESS VALUE CHAIN OR IN A SPECIFIC PROCESS IN THE VALUE CHAIN==
==RESPONDING QUICKLY TO MARKET NEEDS==
==ENJOY WORKING WITH THE CORE PRODUCT AND INNOVATING IT==
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Eike Batista - Facts and info
* Eike Fuhrken Batista (Governador Valadares, November 3, 1957) is a Brazilian entrepreneur. He has founded companies in different business sectors, mainly in mining. He is the son of Eliezer Batista da Silva, a longtime head of mining company Vale.
* In 1980, he moved back to Brazil to begin a gold and trading company in the Amazon. Shortly after he joined Canadian mining firm TVX Gold, making and then losing a fortune, before finally selling his stake in the company for $1 billion in 2000. Afterward he reinvested in several businesses, including mining. A large portion of his wealth was made from OGX, an oil and gas exploration company founded in 2007
* Batista, one of seven children of a high-level government official, got into gold at an early age and eventually controlled mines from Chile to Russia.
* "Initially, I started a trading company to buy the gold and sell it. After a year and a half, there I was at 23 with $6 million in my hand. And margins were going down because competition started to come in. I said, "I have to reinvent myself. Why not buy one of these rich pick-and-shovel mines and mechanize it?" By 1983, I had Brazil's first alluvial mechanized gold mine running in the Amazon jungle."
* "But you know, over time you learn that knowledge is important. So I hired a team of executives from [the Brazilian state oil company] Petrobras who had great knowledge. Finding oil is a multidisciplinary science. You need a lot of people—statisticians, engineers, and geologists, of course. And what I have learned in the past 30 years is that I read people better than I read books."
* A comment on the article about Eike - "'As someone who comes from Indonesia,a land abundant with everything imaginable, from oil to uranium,yes,i agree with the fact that Mr. Batista did have good connections to begin with. But in my country there are also many who have "Papi" connections,yet they are not as successful nor insightful.First of all,the business savvy move of quitting school to take a chance on the brazilian jungles is worth noting in itself.If we look further back, the fact that Mr. Batista was raised in Germany and not in the lavish comforts of Brazil where all "Papi" connections could afford,builds character.What other son of a minister would sell insurance door to door, then dropped out of school to go into the depths of the brazilian jungle and took such a risk that paid off. I''ve seen many in my country with the same,if not better background as Mr. Batista yet don''t come anywhere near his success.So yes, well connection does count,but it is not a guarantee.There is no substitute for plain hard work,and good luck. A trait that i see evident in Mr. Batista.Last note, in any Business World, having good connections is not an upperhand,it''s a must!' "
Highlights
* "But you know, over time you learn that knowledge is important. So I hired a team of executives from Petrobras who had great knowledge. Finding oil is a multidisciplinary science. You need a lot of people—statisticians, engineers, and geologists, of course. And what I have learned in the past 30 years is that I read people better than I read books."
* He is the son of Eliezer Batista da Silva, a longtime head of mining company Vale.
==HAVING PEOPLE WITH COMPLEMENTARY KNOWLEDGE IS IMPORTANT IF YOU WISH TO BUILD SOMETHING THAT IS COMPLEX AND INTEGRATED==
==BEING THE SON OF AN INFLUENTIAL PERSON IN A RELATED INDUSTRY==
* In 1980, he moved back to Brazil to begin a gold and trading company in the Amazon. Shortly after he joined Canadian mining firm TVX Gold, making and then losing a fortune, before finally selling his stake in the company for $1 billion in 2000. Afterward he reinvested in several businesses, including mining. A large portion of his wealth was made from OGX, an oil and gas exploration company founded in 2007
* Batista, one of seven children of a high-level government official, got into gold at an early age and eventually controlled mines from Chile to Russia.
* "Initially, I started a trading company to buy the gold and sell it. After a year and a half, there I was at 23 with $6 million in my hand. And margins were going down because competition started to come in. I said, "I have to reinvent myself. Why not buy one of these rich pick-and-shovel mines and mechanize it?" By 1983, I had Brazil's first alluvial mechanized gold mine running in the Amazon jungle."
* "But you know, over time you learn that knowledge is important. So I hired a team of executives from [the Brazilian state oil company] Petrobras who had great knowledge. Finding oil is a multidisciplinary science. You need a lot of people—statisticians, engineers, and geologists, of course. And what I have learned in the past 30 years is that I read people better than I read books."
* A comment on the article about Eike - "'As someone who comes from Indonesia,a land abundant with everything imaginable, from oil to uranium,yes,i agree with the fact that Mr. Batista did have good connections to begin with. But in my country there are also many who have "Papi" connections,yet they are not as successful nor insightful.First of all,the business savvy move of quitting school to take a chance on the brazilian jungles is worth noting in itself.If we look further back, the fact that Mr. Batista was raised in Germany and not in the lavish comforts of Brazil where all "Papi" connections could afford,builds character.What other son of a minister would sell insurance door to door, then dropped out of school to go into the depths of the brazilian jungle and took such a risk that paid off. I''ve seen many in my country with the same,if not better background as Mr. Batista yet don''t come anywhere near his success.So yes, well connection does count,but it is not a guarantee.There is no substitute for plain hard work,and good luck. A trait that i see evident in Mr. Batista.Last note, in any Business World, having good connections is not an upperhand,it''s a must!' "
Highlights
* "But you know, over time you learn that knowledge is important. So I hired a team of executives from Petrobras who had great knowledge. Finding oil is a multidisciplinary science. You need a lot of people—statisticians, engineers, and geologists, of course. And what I have learned in the past 30 years is that I read people better than I read books."
* He is the son of Eliezer Batista da Silva, a longtime head of mining company Vale.
==HAVING PEOPLE WITH COMPLEMENTARY KNOWLEDGE IS IMPORTANT IF YOU WISH TO BUILD SOMETHING THAT IS COMPLEX AND INTEGRATED==
==BEING THE SON OF AN INFLUENTIAL PERSON IN A RELATED INDUSTRY==
Warren Buffett - Facts, Highlights, Success Secrets?
1. Buffett was born in Omaha, Nebraska, the second of three children and only son of Leila (née Stahl) and businessman/politician Howard Buffett.[13] Buffett began his education at Rose Hill Elementary School in Omaha. In 1942, his father was elected to the first of four terms in the United States Congress
2. Even as a child, Buffett displayed an interest in making and saving money. He went door to door selling chewing gum, Coca-Cola, or weekly magazines. For a while, he worked in his grandfather's grocery store. While still in high school, he carried out several successful money-making ideas: delivering newspapers, selling golfballs and stamps, and detailing cars, among them. Filing his first income tax return in 1944, Buffett took a $35 deduction for the use of his bicycle and watch on his paper route.
3. In 1945, in his sophomore year of high school, Buffett and a friend spent $25 to purchase a used pinball machine, which they placed in the local barber shop. Within months, they owned several machines in different barber shops.
4. Buffett's interest in the stock market and investing also dated to his childhood, to the days he spent in the customers' lounge of a regional stock brokerage near the office of his father's own brokerage company.
5. On a trip to New York City at the age of ten, he made a point to visit the New York Stock Exchange. And about this same time he purchased shares of Cities Service for himself and his sister. While in high school he invested in a business owned by his father and bought a farm worked by a tenant farmer. By the time he finished college, Buffett had accumulated more than $90,000 in savings measured in 2009 dollars
2. Even as a child, Buffett displayed an interest in making and saving money. He went door to door selling chewing gum, Coca-Cola, or weekly magazines. For a while, he worked in his grandfather's grocery store. While still in high school, he carried out several successful money-making ideas: delivering newspapers, selling golfballs and stamps, and detailing cars, among them. Filing his first income tax return in 1944, Buffett took a $35 deduction for the use of his bicycle and watch on his paper route.
3. In 1945, in his sophomore year of high school, Buffett and a friend spent $25 to purchase a used pinball machine, which they placed in the local barber shop. Within months, they owned several machines in different barber shops.
4. Buffett's interest in the stock market and investing also dated to his childhood, to the days he spent in the customers' lounge of a regional stock brokerage near the office of his father's own brokerage company.
5. On a trip to New York City at the age of ten, he made a point to visit the New York Stock Exchange. And about this same time he purchased shares of Cities Service for himself and his sister. While in high school he invested in a business owned by his father and bought a farm worked by a tenant farmer. By the time he finished college, Buffett had accumulated more than $90,000 in savings measured in 2009 dollars
Monday, July 19, 2010
Carlos Slim Helu - Facts, Data, Quotes and More
* His parents founded the first magazine for the Lebanese community in Mexico
* According to The Wall Street Journal, Slim credits part of his ability to discover investment opportunities early to the writings of his friend, futurist author Alvin Toffler.
* Slim gained notoriety when he led a group of investors that included France Télécom and Southwestern Bell Corporation in buying Telmex and Telnor from the Mexican government in 1990 in a public tender during the presidency of Carlos Salinas. Slim was able to raise money for a telecommunications company by purchasing standby letters of credit which enabled him to obtain guaranteed loans which provided the capital. Today, 90 percent of the telephone lines in Mexico are operated by Telmex.
* " His portfolio is set up so he can shift to a sector that's performing well cyclically ... It's all part of diversification." - SOURCE: Financial Post
* "As long as you have bigger production in your mines, your profitability margins are bigger"
* Mexico's Carlos Slim makes his billions the old-fashioned way: monopolies
* The portly Mr. Slim is a study in contradiction. He says he likes competition in business, but blocks it at every turn. He loves talking about technology, but doesn't use a computer and prefers pen and paper. He hosts everyone from Bill Clinton to author Gabriel García Márquez at his Mexico City mansion, but is provincial in many ways, doesn't travel widely, and proudly says he owns no homes outside of Mexico. In a country of soccer fans, he likes baseball. He roots for the sport's richest team, the New York Yankees.
* Mr. Slim's strategy has been consistent over his long career: Buy companies on the cheap, whip them into shape, and ruthlessly drive competitors out of business. After Mr. Slim got control of Telmex in 1990, he quickly cornered the market for copper cables used by Telmex for telephone wires. He bought one of the two main suppliers and made sure Telmex didn't buy any cable from the other big supplier, eventually prompting the owners to sell the company to him.
* The fifth of six children, Mr. Slim was born wealthy. His father, Julian Slim, made his fortune on a general store in downtown Mexico City called "The Orient Star." His father died when Mr. Slim was only 13.
* Early on, Mr. Slim showed an aptitude for numbers that would help his career. He taught algebra at Mexico's largest public university while finishing his thesis, titled "Applications of Linear Theory in Civil Engineering."
* After college, Mr. Slim and some friends became stockbrokers in the country's fledgling market. Trading by day and playing dominoes by night, the clique became known as "Los Casabolseros," or "The Stock Market Boys."
* A good time to buy came in 1982, a year that would shape Mr. Slim's destiny. That year, the collapsing price of oil threw Mexico into a tailspin. When departing president José López Portillo nationalized Mexico's banks, the traditional business elite feared the country was becoming socialist, and ran for the exits. Companies were selling for as little as 5% of their book value. Mr. Slim picked up dozens of leading firms for bargain-basement prices, a move that paid off when the economy recovered in the following years. He bought Mexico's largest insurer, Seguros de México, for $44 million. Today, the company is worth at least $2.5 billion. "Countries don't go broke," an unflappable Mr. Slim told friends at the time
* Despite his abilities, many here believe his biggest break was the rise to power in 1988 of Carlos Salinas, a Harvard-educated technocrat bent on modernizing the country. The two men had struck up a friendship in the mid-1980s, and Mr. Salinas spoke of Mr. Slim as the country's brightest young businessman.
* In 2004, Spain's Telefónica SA began selling handsets at a loss here to build market share. But it soon realized that tens of thousands of phones were purchased but never used. According to a case currently at Mexico's antitrust agency, Telefónica says that Telcel (Slim's co) distributors bought the phones to keep them off the market, in some cases swapping the phone's existing chip with their own and reselling the handset.
* The Telmex chief also had friends in high places. Vicente Fox, Mexico's first opposition president when he won in 2000, tapped a former Telmex employee, Pedro Cerisola, to be his minister of communications and transport. During his tenure, Mr. Cerisola rarely moved against Telmex, say executives from rival telephone companies.
Highlights
* His parents founded the first magazine for the Lebanese community in Mexico
* Slim credits part of his ability to discover investment opportunities early to the writings of his friend, futurist author Alvin Toffler.
* Slim gained notoriety when he led a group of investors that included France Télécom and Southwestern Bell Corporation in buying Telmex and Telnor from the Mexican government in 1990 in a public tender during the presidency of Carlos Salinas. Slim was able to raise money for a telecommunications company by purchasing standby letters of credit which enabled him to obtain guaranteed loans which provided the capital.
* Mr. Slim's strategy has been consistent over his long career: Buy companies on the cheap, whip them into shape, and ruthlessly drive competitors out of business.
* Despite his abilities, many here believe his biggest break was the rise to power in 1988 of Carlos Salinas, a Harvard-educated technocrat bent on modernizing the country. The two men had struck up a friendship in the mid-1980s, and Mr. Salinas spoke of Mr. Slim as the country's brightest young businessman.
* A good time to buy came in 1982, a year that would shape Mr. Slim's destiny. That year, the collapsing price of oil threw Mexico into a tailspin. When departing president José López Portillo nationalized Mexico's banks, the traditional business elite feared the country was becoming socialist, and ran for the exits. Companies were selling for as little as 5% of their book value. Mr. Slim picked up dozens of leading firms for bargain-basement prices, a move that paid off when the economy recovered in the following years.
* After college, Mr. Slim and some friends became stockbrokers in the country's fledgling market. Trading by day and playing dominoes by night, the clique became known as "Los Casabolseros," or "The Stock Market Boys."
==BEING THE FIRST TO LAUNCH A PRODUCT EVEN IF FOR A NICHE MARKET SEGMENT==
==DISCOVERING INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES EARLY==
==BUYING THINGS ON THE CHEAP, WHIPPING THEM INTO SHAPE AND RUTHLESSLY DRIVE COMPETITORS OUT OF BUSINESS==
==BECOMING FRIEND WITH TOP POLITICAL LEADERSHIP==
==BUYING THINGS WHEN EVERYONE IS SELLING IN A DISTRESS MARKET==
==BEING ONE OF THE FIRST TO START WORKING IN A NEW MARKET==
* According to The Wall Street Journal, Slim credits part of his ability to discover investment opportunities early to the writings of his friend, futurist author Alvin Toffler.
* Slim gained notoriety when he led a group of investors that included France Télécom and Southwestern Bell Corporation in buying Telmex and Telnor from the Mexican government in 1990 in a public tender during the presidency of Carlos Salinas. Slim was able to raise money for a telecommunications company by purchasing standby letters of credit which enabled him to obtain guaranteed loans which provided the capital. Today, 90 percent of the telephone lines in Mexico are operated by Telmex.
* " His portfolio is set up so he can shift to a sector that's performing well cyclically ... It's all part of diversification." - SOURCE: Financial Post
* "As long as you have bigger production in your mines, your profitability margins are bigger"
* Mexico's Carlos Slim makes his billions the old-fashioned way: monopolies
* The portly Mr. Slim is a study in contradiction. He says he likes competition in business, but blocks it at every turn. He loves talking about technology, but doesn't use a computer and prefers pen and paper. He hosts everyone from Bill Clinton to author Gabriel García Márquez at his Mexico City mansion, but is provincial in many ways, doesn't travel widely, and proudly says he owns no homes outside of Mexico. In a country of soccer fans, he likes baseball. He roots for the sport's richest team, the New York Yankees.
* Mr. Slim's strategy has been consistent over his long career: Buy companies on the cheap, whip them into shape, and ruthlessly drive competitors out of business. After Mr. Slim got control of Telmex in 1990, he quickly cornered the market for copper cables used by Telmex for telephone wires. He bought one of the two main suppliers and made sure Telmex didn't buy any cable from the other big supplier, eventually prompting the owners to sell the company to him.
* The fifth of six children, Mr. Slim was born wealthy. His father, Julian Slim, made his fortune on a general store in downtown Mexico City called "The Orient Star." His father died when Mr. Slim was only 13.
* Early on, Mr. Slim showed an aptitude for numbers that would help his career. He taught algebra at Mexico's largest public university while finishing his thesis, titled "Applications of Linear Theory in Civil Engineering."
* After college, Mr. Slim and some friends became stockbrokers in the country's fledgling market. Trading by day and playing dominoes by night, the clique became known as "Los Casabolseros," or "The Stock Market Boys."
* A good time to buy came in 1982, a year that would shape Mr. Slim's destiny. That year, the collapsing price of oil threw Mexico into a tailspin. When departing president José López Portillo nationalized Mexico's banks, the traditional business elite feared the country was becoming socialist, and ran for the exits. Companies were selling for as little as 5% of their book value. Mr. Slim picked up dozens of leading firms for bargain-basement prices, a move that paid off when the economy recovered in the following years. He bought Mexico's largest insurer, Seguros de México, for $44 million. Today, the company is worth at least $2.5 billion. "Countries don't go broke," an unflappable Mr. Slim told friends at the time
* Despite his abilities, many here believe his biggest break was the rise to power in 1988 of Carlos Salinas, a Harvard-educated technocrat bent on modernizing the country. The two men had struck up a friendship in the mid-1980s, and Mr. Salinas spoke of Mr. Slim as the country's brightest young businessman.
* In 2004, Spain's Telefónica SA began selling handsets at a loss here to build market share. But it soon realized that tens of thousands of phones were purchased but never used. According to a case currently at Mexico's antitrust agency, Telefónica says that Telcel (Slim's co) distributors bought the phones to keep them off the market, in some cases swapping the phone's existing chip with their own and reselling the handset.
* The Telmex chief also had friends in high places. Vicente Fox, Mexico's first opposition president when he won in 2000, tapped a former Telmex employee, Pedro Cerisola, to be his minister of communications and transport. During his tenure, Mr. Cerisola rarely moved against Telmex, say executives from rival telephone companies.
Highlights
* His parents founded the first magazine for the Lebanese community in Mexico
* Slim credits part of his ability to discover investment opportunities early to the writings of his friend, futurist author Alvin Toffler.
* Slim gained notoriety when he led a group of investors that included France Télécom and Southwestern Bell Corporation in buying Telmex and Telnor from the Mexican government in 1990 in a public tender during the presidency of Carlos Salinas. Slim was able to raise money for a telecommunications company by purchasing standby letters of credit which enabled him to obtain guaranteed loans which provided the capital.
* Mr. Slim's strategy has been consistent over his long career: Buy companies on the cheap, whip them into shape, and ruthlessly drive competitors out of business.
* Despite his abilities, many here believe his biggest break was the rise to power in 1988 of Carlos Salinas, a Harvard-educated technocrat bent on modernizing the country. The two men had struck up a friendship in the mid-1980s, and Mr. Salinas spoke of Mr. Slim as the country's brightest young businessman.
* A good time to buy came in 1982, a year that would shape Mr. Slim's destiny. That year, the collapsing price of oil threw Mexico into a tailspin. When departing president José López Portillo nationalized Mexico's banks, the traditional business elite feared the country was becoming socialist, and ran for the exits. Companies were selling for as little as 5% of their book value. Mr. Slim picked up dozens of leading firms for bargain-basement prices, a move that paid off when the economy recovered in the following years.
* After college, Mr. Slim and some friends became stockbrokers in the country's fledgling market. Trading by day and playing dominoes by night, the clique became known as "Los Casabolseros," or "The Stock Market Boys."
==BEING THE FIRST TO LAUNCH A PRODUCT EVEN IF FOR A NICHE MARKET SEGMENT==
==DISCOVERING INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES EARLY==
==BUYING THINGS ON THE CHEAP, WHIPPING THEM INTO SHAPE AND RUTHLESSLY DRIVE COMPETITORS OUT OF BUSINESS==
==BECOMING FRIEND WITH TOP POLITICAL LEADERSHIP==
==BUYING THINGS WHEN EVERYONE IS SELLING IN A DISTRESS MARKET==
==BEING ONE OF THE FIRST TO START WORKING IN A NEW MARKET==
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