The Reluctant Entrepreneur: Turning Dreams into Profits

CHAPTER 3

WHAT IT TAKES TO BE A SUCCESSFUL RELUCTANT ENTREPRENEUR

Louis Borders had proven that he could start a successful business. The bookstore he’d founded with his brother Tom in 1971 had become a national chain, Borders Books.

Then, in the late 1990s, Louis’s entrepreneurial juices started flowing once again. He decided to start another company. No longer actively running Borders Books, he had plenty of time. He also had loads of money. And he believed he had a great idea: an online home-delivery grocery service. He called it Webvan, and there was nothing “reluctant” about it.

With his connections, he was able to raise all the startup capital he needed as well as convince high-profile businesspeople to sit on his board. The only thing he didn’t have was experience in the supermarket industry. But that didn’t faze him. He was fearless.

The first thing he did was spend a billion dollars building warehouses. Next, he bought a fleet of delivery trucks. Then he installed dozens of high-end computers and server systems. And he hired several thousand people, including hundreds of senior executives to run the business. He lured them in with big salaries, tantalizing bonuses, and luxurious office spaces. He spared no expense. The chairs they sat in were Herman Miller Aerons, at almost a grand a pop.

It looked like he had done everything right. There were glowing reports in the financial press about his likely success. Investors were dying to buy stock in Webvan.

Then reality set ...