IncBizNet
Resource Centers
Special Sections
is your arsenal for developing and maintaining sound financial plans and business strategy.
Inside: Budgeting | Compensation | Valuation
Free Trial: Intuit QuickBooks
Simple Start Free Edition 2009 for Windows
Departments
Newsletters
Click below to preview:
Help Me...
- Build a Business Plan
- Search for Software
- View Product Gallery
- View Product Guides
- Search Classifieds
Sponsored Links
Fresh Inc. - The Inc.com Weblog
Staff Blog Menu
Regular Features
Recent Entries
22-Year-Old Tumblr Founder Raises $4.5 Million
News: Employee Alumni Networks and More
Aeron chair discounts, cheap shipping & more
A Danish scam, deflation, and letdown at Macworld
Deflation, Facebook and Scrabulous
Neeleman's New Venture Takes Flight
Joel Was Wrong, Arrington Gets Uninvited, and This Wink Will Cost You
A great $3 gift for your employees
Inc. Recommends
Archives
July 11, 2005
Inc.'s New Owner
Posted by John Koten at 3:12 PM
When asked to say a few words on this weblog about the advertisement Inc.'s new owner, Joe Mansueto, placed in the Times today, I immediately thought of the editor's letter I penned for the August issue. Here's that letter, as Inc. readers will see it in the coming weeks.
Great entrepreneurs succeed where others fail because they are nimble and because they stick to a core set of values. Nimbleness is a prized weapon of the entrepreneur because it is the means through which opportunity can be snatched from the entrenched.
Quick action, however, is useless without the steering mechanism of clear and principled values. The staff at Inc. has just witnessed a compelling example of this from the inside.
Just over 30 days ago, as I write this, our parent company, Gruner + Jahr, decided to put the magazine up for sale. For reasons I don't have space to go into here, potential buyers had less than five weeks to bid and to complete the transaction. Many larger corporations, well-known individuals, private equity firms, and even a management group jumped at the chance to try to buy Inc.
In the end, however, only one suitor was able to move quickly enough to complete the purchase in what the investment bank that handled the sale thinks may have been a record time. The winner: a quintessential entrepreneur and five-time Inc. 500 honoree named Joe Mansueto.
You may recognize this guy. He's appeared on the cover of this magazine (as you can see here--that's the February 1999 issue). In 1984, Joe founded the mutual fund research company Morningstar in his apartment. He built it into a company that went public earlier this year and reported revenue of $53.2 million in its first quarterly report to shareholders. For all his success, however, Joe still follows the same basic business principles: He believes in the power of serving customers and building great brands. In a letter that Inc. employees received today, he put it simply: "Our company should be the kind of innovative, progressive organization that our magazine has always inspired and has helped our readers to create." Believe me, after the turmoil we've been through in the past month, this is music to our ears.
Here's something else I know about Joe. He traces his family roots back to a town in Italy called Montefalcone--"the mountain of the falcon." On the day Joe beat out Time Warner, The Economist Group, and Advance Publications for the chance to own Inc., it did seem as if a falcon had swooped out of the sky and snapped us up. Could there be a more fitting symbol for an Inc. entrepreneur?
Click here to read the advertisement Joe Mansueto placed in the New York Times.
Try a RISK-FREE Issue of Inc. Today!
I enjoyed reading this inspirational article, thank you! I believe Inc. is in great hands!
Cheers!
Heidy Medrano - Boston, MA
This was an intriguing article that proves that having strong principals is one of the many tools that make entrepreneurs a success. Congrats, Joe - I am glad to see that you will continue to pave the path of success for your employees as well as exceed the expectations of your customers.
David McCormick
Wilmington, Delaware
It is principles, not principals no? Anyhow, please review www.dynashoppe.com and let me know how we can get press at Inc.com to help us publicize this powerful new product. eCommerce with all the bells and whistles for pennies not hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Kudos to Joe! You snatched a jewel from the clutches of corporate titans. My your flight always be swift and nimble. Inc. is still the best for entrepreneurs fighting the good fight.
Hi, father came out in one of your magazines back in july of 1984, I am trying to find that article.
My father's name is Eddie Alago, it was based out of brooklyn ny, would you be able to help me?
Thank You
Linda Alago
Post Your Own Comments