Today Werner Otto one of the richest men in the world died.
Penniless in 1949 at the age of 40, he build a business empire from scratch, starting with a mail order business that began with a hand made 14 page catalog.
Pillar of Germany's Economic Miracle: Founder of Otto Mail Order Chain Dies - SPIEGEL ONLINE - News - International
Read this for a bit of inspiration...
Favorite parts of the article:
Otto founded his mail-order business in 1949. In later years, he would tell the story of how a mistake saved his company. "The accounting department was fraught with many weaknesses in the early years," he recalled. "When, in 1952, we finally received the accounts for the years 1950 and 1951, we realized that we had been deep in the red and should actually have declared bankruptcy." But the profits were so good in 1952 that they made up for the previous two years, he explained: "Sloppy bookkeeping saved us from an overhasty step."
and even more:
During the 1950s, Otto's mail-order company doubled its sales. Unlike the competition, Otto focused more on quality than on low prices, and was therefore able to appeal to new target groups who had previously shunned mail order. Otto's company was the first mail-order business that took orders by phone and invoiced its customers instead of insisting on cash on delivery. The entrepreneur founded the Hermes logistics group in order to control the delivery of its goods more effectively.
The last lesson still rings true today... Be consistent... Deliver quality... Build a brand...
Penniless in 1949 at the age of 40, he build a business empire from scratch, starting with a mail order business that began with a hand made 14 page catalog.
Pillar of Germany's Economic Miracle: Founder of Otto Mail Order Chain Dies - SPIEGEL ONLINE - News - International
Read this for a bit of inspiration...
Favorite parts of the article:
Otto founded his mail-order business in 1949. In later years, he would tell the story of how a mistake saved his company. "The accounting department was fraught with many weaknesses in the early years," he recalled. "When, in 1952, we finally received the accounts for the years 1950 and 1951, we realized that we had been deep in the red and should actually have declared bankruptcy." But the profits were so good in 1952 that they made up for the previous two years, he explained: "Sloppy bookkeeping saved us from an overhasty step."
and even more:
During the 1950s, Otto's mail-order company doubled its sales. Unlike the competition, Otto focused more on quality than on low prices, and was therefore able to appeal to new target groups who had previously shunned mail order. Otto's company was the first mail-order business that took orders by phone and invoiced its customers instead of insisting on cash on delivery. The entrepreneur founded the Hermes logistics group in order to control the delivery of its goods more effectively.
The last lesson still rings true today... Be consistent... Deliver quality... Build a brand...
