Late Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh devised a '10X' scheme to spend his wealth in the last weeks of his life. Here's how those close to him took advantage of it.
Former Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh died in 2020 following injuries he sustained in a house fire.
Hsieh devised a scheme called "10X" that demanded achievement in multiples of ten, Forbes reported.
Many of those close to him made money on this scheme by getting 10% commissions from Hsieh.
In the last weeks of his life, the former Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh spent much of his wealth in a scheme he devised called 10X.
Hsieh, who spent 21 years as Zappos' CEO before departing in 2020, died in November of that year following injuries he sustained in a house fire more than a week prior. Prior to his death, Hsieh had increasingly been abusing ketamine and nitrous oxide.
In the final year of his life, Hsieh went on a real estate buying spree in Park City, Utah, hoping to turn the city into an entrepreneurial community similar to what he did in Las Vegas, as Insider previously reported. Hsieh first used his 10X scheme to help Park City reopen during the pandemic, according to an excerpt that was published in Forbes of the upcoming book Wonder Boy by Angel Au-Yeung and David Jeans.
Hsieh would sell $10 memberships to people to grant them an all-you-can-eat-and-drink pass to local restaurants, as well as T-shirts and merchandise with a 10X logo. The state of Utah ended up shutting down the program after two weeks.
Hsieh expanded the scope of 10X by demanding that everything be achieved in multiples of ten and vowing that anyone who spends his money will be entitled to a 10% commission on the amount they spent, Forbes reported.
Many who were close to Hsieh started taking advantage of this program. For example, Hsieh's longtime personal assistant Mimi Pham "managed" a contractor who was paid $83,333.33 a month for various projects, allowing her to earn $8,333 each time he was paid. Pham also took 10% of the fees for arranging for a fleet of buses to be retrofitted for $3.7 million and a $7 million acquisition of the Big Moose Yacht Club.
Pham's boyfriend Roberto Grande also set up an LLC that was controlled by him, Hsieh, and Pham. The LLC had $10 million to fund documentary film projects, which entitled Grande to a $1 million commission. Hsieh was charged another 10% fee on the cost of lawyers to arrange that commission payment.
The 10X scheme sometimes caused disputes. Notably, when Hsieh wanted singer Paula Abdul to perform in Park City and proposed that she perform 180 shows at a local event venue called Yellowstone for a $9 million contract, promising a $900,000 commission to whoever could close the deal. Both Pham and Hsieh's brother Andy Hsieh claimed to arrange it, although nothing came of that proposal. The two also feuded over a 10% commission on the $15 million ranch Hsieh lived on.
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