Delivering Happiness

About the Author

Tony Hsieh was the CEO of Zappos, an online retailer that achieved over $1 billion in gross merchandise sales annually. Before joining Zappos, Hsieh co-founded LinkExchange, which he sold to Microsoft for $265 million. His book "Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose" shares his journey and the lessons he learned about building a successful business focused on customer and employee happiness.

Main Idea

The main idea of "Delivering Happiness" is to illustrate how focusing on the happiness of customers and employees can lead to unprecedented business success. Hsieh provides insights into the importance of corporate culture, customer service, and employee growth, demonstrating how these elements can create a profitable, passionate, and purposeful business environment.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction: Finding My Way
2. Section I: Profits
3. Section II: Profits and Passion
4. Section III: Profits, Passion, and Purpose
5. Epilogue: Join the Movement

Introduction: Finding My Way

Tony Hsieh opens the book by reflecting on his journey from selling LinkExchange to becoming the CEO of Zappos. He describes a pivotal moment when Zappos was acquired by Amazon, emphasizing that the company's success was not just about financial gains but about building a business that combined profits, passion, and purpose. Hsieh shares how his path began long before Zappos, with various business ventures and experiences shaping his understanding of happiness and business success.

"Together, we had built a business that combined profits, passion, and purpose. And we knew that it wasn't just about building a business. It was about building a lifestyle that was about delivering happiness to everyone, including ourselves." – Tony Hsieh

Section I: Profits

Quincy House Grille

Hsieh recounts his early entrepreneurial experience running a pizza business in college. He highlights the importance of taking risks and being innovative, such as transitioning from selling McDonald's burgers to starting a high-margin pizza business. This venture taught him valuable lessons about profitability and customer satisfaction.

• High-Margin Products: Transitioning to selling pizzas, which had higher profit margins compared to burgers.
• Customer Experience: Enhancing the dining experience with music videos to attract more customers.

LinkExchange

Hsieh explains how LinkExchange started as a project to combat boredom and quickly grew into a successful business. He discusses the challenges of rapid growth, including hiring motivated employees and managing company culture. The sale of LinkExchange to Microsoft for $265 million marked a significant financial success but also highlighted the importance of maintaining a positive work environment.

"The idea behind LinkExchange was pretty simple. If you ran a website, you could sign up for our service for free... It had the potential to turn into something big." – Tony Hsieh

• Motivated Employees: Hiring smart, driven individuals who were initially motivated by money and career growth.
• Company Culture: Struggling with maintaining a positive culture as the company grew rapidly.

Section II: Profits and Passion

Challenges and Growth at Zappos

The early years at Zappos were challenging, with the company facing financial difficulties and the dot-com crash. Hsieh emphasizes the importance of passion and commitment in overcoming these obstacles. The decision to hold inventory and change the business model led to significant growth, with sales increasing from $1.6 million in 2000 to $32 million in 2002.