On April 17th 1973, FedEx went "live" and delivered its very first packages after its owner, Frederick W. Smith raised $91 million in venture capital. After adding $4 million of inherited money to his funding, Smith purchased a used aircraft company in Little Rock, Arkansas. He began using the aircraft to provide overnight delivery services for envelopes and small packages being shipped within the United States. Smith incorporated his business, Federal Express, on June 18, 1971. It took him two years to build and test the initial 25-city network, flying empty boxes across the country.
Frederick W. Smith, a Memphis Tennessee, native and a former Marine pilot, originally outlined his idea for an overnight delivery service in a term paper he wrote for a Yale University economics class. He felt that air freight had different requirements than air passenger service and that a company specializing in air freight rather than making it an add-on to passenger service would find a lucrative business niche.
Speed was more important than cost, in Smith's view, and access to smaller cities was essential. His strategies included shipping all packages through a single hub and building a private fleet of aircraft. Company-owned planes would free the service from commercial-airline schedules and shipping regulations, while a single hub would permit the tight control that got packages to their destinations overnight.
In making his dream a reality, Smith selected Memphis as his hub: it was centrally located and despite inclement weather its modern airport rarely closed.
In addition to FedEx, Smith is also a co-owner of the Washington Redskins NFL Team. This partnership resulted in FedEx sponsorship of the Joe Gibbs NASCAR racing team. Smith also owns or co-owns several entertainment companies, including Dream Image Productions and Alcon Films.
11 comments:
And the rest is history!! Awesome background story!
(PS My blog is now in the hands of a real designer so stay tuned!!)
Wilsonnnnnnnn........ :)
x
I wish I could have one of those billion dollar ideas!
Enlightening story!
I've never had a $5.00 idea...I can't imagine having a multibillion dollar idea!
Interesting... Thanks for the share. :)
FedEx winning hearts of millions one package at a time!
(=
Very interesting! I never knew the story behind Fed Ex.
west being a small town we use fedex and ups often..fedex has different drivers all the time and they never know where anyone lives..always lost they can't find anyone..the ups guy has been on this route for over 10 years..he not only knows where you live, he knows which dogs like liver snaps and which ones like chewies...and he knows their names..when i see him now, he still commits on how much he misses my dog nate..who was a 110 pitty bull dog who adored the driver as he brought him liver snaps.
FedEx always has problems delivering to me where I live. Not sure why. UPS can find me no problem. :\
Interesting story, tho.
I'm always amazed when FedEx or UPS find me, but somehow they always do.
My sis came to visit from AZ once and couldn't remember how to get to my house. She stopped at a convenient store in the little town close to us to ask directions. The FedEx guy was there and heard the address she gave and he said "Oh, that is XXXX's house and proceeded to tell her exactly how to get here.
Now that is service! Thanks for the history lesson Iggy. I enjoyed it as always.
*goes away to think on my million dollar idea*
*nods* a good read for sure. Shh. Dont tell my brother I said that, he works for "Brown".
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