diapers.com: Marc Lore. The ecommerce visionary who lost to Amazon but still made billions (2021)

diapers.com: Marc Lore. The ecommerce visionary who lost to Amazon but still made billions (2021)

Back in the early days of ecommerce, Marc Lore took a classic retail loss leader–diapers– and turned it into a DTC giant– Diapers.com. It did so well that it attracted the attention of Amazon, which slashed prices on its own diapers until Marc was forced to sell them his business.

It was not a happy moment, but it was a galvanizing one: Marc went on to launch another ecommerce company, jet.com. Within a year, it was bought by Walmart in a deal valued at $3.3 billion.

This is a story about a devastating corporate surrender, a multi-million dollar comeback, and a founder with a relentless ability to re-invent himself.

Timestamps:

10:04 – Marc’s “boost-your-grades” bet with his college coach

14:21 – A job on Wall Street and a Master Plan: 8 figures by age 48

16:28 – How a lunchtime lark turned into a spot on the U.S. Bobsled Team

27:44 – How random Google searches led Marc to diapers

35:29 – Guerilla tactic: Buying all of P&G’s diapers to get their attention

40:07 – The simple packaging hack that boosted sales

45:53 – Building a retail empire (and getting on Amazon’s radar)

47:52 – Amazon’s scorched earth strategy forces Marc to sell

1:00:11 – Raising $750M to take on Jeff Bezos

1:03:02 – A brand new business and a $3.3 billion exit: Walmart’s record-breaking deal

This episode was produced by Casey Herman with music composed by Ramtin Arablouei. It was edited by Neva Grant.

Follow How I Built This:

Instagram → @howibuiltthis

X → @HowIBuiltThis

Facebook → How I Built This

Follow Guy Raz:

Instagram → @guy.raz

Youtube → guy_raz

X → @guyraz

Substack → guyraz.substack.com

Website → guyraz.com

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Jaksot(820)

Kettle Chips: Cameron Healy. The Wild Bet That Made a Brand

Kettle Chips: Cameron Healy. The Wild Bet That Made a Brand

Kettle Chips: Cameron Healy. The Wild Bet That Made a BrandMost founders expand the “right” way: local → regional → national → international.Cameron Healy totally skipped the “national” part. When Ket...

2 Maalis 1h

Advice Line with Alexa Hirschfeld of Paperless Post

Advice Line with Alexa Hirschfeld of Paperless Post

Today’s callers: Jess from Washington seeks counsel on structuring a collaboration between her sympathy cards company and a pet products brand. Then, Caroline from Colorado wonders if she should build...

26 Helmi 41min

Square: Jim McKelvey. He Lost a $2,000 Sale, Then Built a $10 Billion Company

Square: Jim McKelvey. He Lost a $2,000 Sale, Then Built a $10 Billion Company

Most entrepreneurs think the hardest part of building a company is the product.For Jim McKelvey — co-founder of Square — the hardest part was the system around the product.Because Square wasn’t just c...

23 Helmi 1h 11min

Advice Line with Pete Maldonado and Rashid Ali of Chomps

Advice Line with Pete Maldonado and Rashid Ali of Chomps

Today’s callers: Yadi from New York thinks through an expansion strategy for her college campus-based empanada business. Then, Zachary from New York looks for ways to break into big retailers with his...

19 Helmi 48min

Spinbrush: John Osher. The Electric Toothbrush That Sold for $475M

Spinbrush: John Osher. The Electric Toothbrush That Sold for $475M

Before Spinbrush became the top selling toothbrush in the U.S—and before Procter & Gamble paid $475M for it—John Osher was a teenager selling earrings for $4.99. In this episode, John walks through th...

16 Helmi 1h

Advice Line with Julia Hartz of Eventbrite

Advice Line with Julia Hartz of Eventbrite

Today’s callers: Mia from Germany wants to know how to balance her pottery business between an online shop and a YouTube channel. Then, Jen from Connecticut is looking for ways to reach more families ...

12 Helmi 46min

Netflix: Reed Hastings. “We’re Not a Family.” The Provocative Idea That Helped Build a Streaming Giant

Netflix: Reed Hastings. “We’re Not a Family.” The Provocative Idea That Helped Build a Streaming Giant

Netflix shouldn’t have survived.In 1997, Blockbuster owned home entertainment—9,000 stores, a business fueled by late fees, and a brand that felt untouchable. Netflix was a scrappy DVD-by-mail experim...

9 Helmi 1h 24min

Advice Line with Jon Stein of Betterment

Advice Line with Jon Stein of Betterment

Plus, Jon’s take on why now is a good time to start a business — in spite of market uncertainty. Today’s callers: Dan from Washington considers new offerings beyond his core loose leaf yerba mate pr...

5 Helmi 46min

Suosittua kategoriassa Liike-elämä ja talous

sijotuskasti
mimmit-sijoittaa
rss-rahapodi
psykopodiaa-podcast
herrasmieshakkerit
ostan-asuntoja-podcast
rahapuhetta
rss-rahamania
rss-lahtijat
rss-seuraava-potilas
leadcast
rss-merja-mahkan-rahat
rss-40-ajatusta-aanesta
rss-porssipuhetta
rss-levosta-kasin-yrittajyys
rss-sisalto-kuntoon
rss-vaikuttavan-opettajan-vierella
rss-ma
rss-bisneksen-pehmea-puoli
rss-draivi