How Berry Gordy Turned An $800 Loan Into A $200 Million Fortune

Well, it's black history month so, I decided to write a short piece to honor one of my business idols, Berry Gordy.

U.S. Business hall of famer, Rock and Roll hall of famer and Motown Records founder Berry Gordy had an interesting philosophy when it came to writing hit records for new acts. He believed that a hit record should be followed up with a record that sounded almost identical to the first hit.

That formula helped him create classic hit after classic hit after classic hit, and legendary artists like Michael Jackson, The Jackson 5, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, Diana Ross and The Supremes, Smokey Robinson and The Miracles, The Temptations, Gladys Knight and The Pips and many other outstanding musical acts.

Obviously, Gordy knew what he was doing when it came to business. He took a company that he started in 1959 with an $800 loan from his family, and later sold his interest in the company for $61 million - and that doesn't even include the tens of millions of dollars he made when he sold his music publishing rights. Altogether, he walked away with around $200 million - not a bad return on your investment.

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