Gustavus Franklin Swift (1830-1903) opened a butcher shop in 1855 with $400 and grew it into a company worth $125 Million dollars and over 21,000 workers at the time of his death in 1903. He was a curious lifelong learner, entrepreneur, and world-class innovator. He created several business model changes in meat packing first at the Chicago Stockyards and then across the Midwest. The most famous one involving the refrigerated boxcar and changing how the meat packing and railroad industry operated. Henry Ford credited Gustavus Franklin Swift in his autobiography for Ford’s eventual assembly line. This came after visiting Swift’s plant in Chicago. He wrote no books. If you retain Fearless Revival, you are likely to learn some of the most interesting facts about Gustavus Franklin Swift. These will change the way you do business.
The YouTube video below demonstrates the size and magnitude of the Swift and Company Fort Worth Stockyards which gives one a glimpse into the Swift meat packing empire:
Quotes:
The secret of all great undertakings is hard work and self-reliance. – Gustavus Franklin Swift