I recently visited Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh in Las Vegas. Sitting in his condo in a room lined with hundreds of plants and overlooking the Vegas skyline, we talked about his success and what’s next for Zappos.
Zappos.com is an online retailer with a specialty in shoes. It has branched out into other clothing lines in recent years. It is known for its exceptional customer service.
Zappos is different in many ways. Here are three:
Image courtesy of istockphoto/AnthiaCumming
What do you get for someone who has everything?
You may naturally think that as the CEO of a book company that I am going to suggest giving a book. Well, that’s always a great idea, but I have found something that I think is even better, even cheaper, and even more enduring.
What is it?
A handwritten note.
One of the most creative, and inspiring short films I have ever seen is “The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore.” I’ve seen teenagers cry and toddlers mesmerized when watching this fifteen-minute film. Adults barely contain their sense of wonder.
There are so many messages from this short film to consider. If I were an English professor, I would assign this film as an essay question just to see what students would write. What makes it so powerful is not only the emotion it evokes, but also the different lessons everyone takes away.
Here are a few:
Avid readers know the name Ann Patchett. Her work—from Bel Canto to State of Wonder as well as many other books—has won numerous accolades and awards, and she regularly tops the New York Times bestseller list.
When Nashville recently lost its bookstores, Ann decided to do something about it. She opened Parnassus Books, an independent store, with partner Karen Hayes. I was there for its grand opening and watched the crowds swarm in to celebrate the return of a local bookstore. The excitement over Parnassus quickly spread beyond the city’s borders—in fact, a bestselling author opening a bookstore landed Ann not on the book page, but on the front page, of the New York Times.
Ann recently gave an inspiring keynote address for booksellers in New Orleans. I sat down with her to talk about her success as a writer and her new career as a bookseller.
Photo courtesy Ree Drummond
Pioneer Woman Ree Drummond’s list of accomplishments is long and impressive: hugely popular blogger and winner of the Weblog of the Year Award in 2009 and 2010, New York Times bestselling author, Food Network star, one of Forbes’ Top 25 Web Celebrities—and to think it all began several years ago when she decided to start a blog to keep her mother updated on family and life.
She has a new cookbook—her second called The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Food from My Frontier—coming March 13. I recently asked her questions ranging from her recipe taste testing to the phenomenal success of her blog.
