Sheldon Adelson is best known for being the founder, chairman and chief executive officer of Las Vegas Sands Corporation. As of May 2020 his net worth is $29.7 billion, but how did he become a successful billionaire entrepreneur?
Adelson was born into a low income family, his father was a taxi driver while his mother ran a knitting shop. He had show his entrepreneurial skills at a young age and at the age of 12 he borrowed $200 off of his uncle, in order to purchase a license to sell news papers in Boston. he again borrowed more money off of his uncle at the age of 16 to start a candy-vending-machine business. Sheldon Adelson attended the City College of New York. However he did not graduate, instead he joined trade school in a failed attempt to become a court reporter, subsequently he joined the army.
After being discharged from the army he went back to his entrepreneur ways. Adelson started a business selling toiletry kits. He then went on to start another business named ‘De-Ice-It’ in which he sold a chemical spray to help clear frozen windshields. He soon became a millionaire after starting a charter tours business. By the time he was 30 he had built and lost his fortune twice, and had created almost 50 of his own businesses, making him a serial entrepreneur. In 1988, Adelson and his partners purchased the Sands Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. While honeymooning in Venice with his second wife Adelson found the inspiration for a mega-resort hotel. He spent $1.5 billion to construct The Venetian, a Venice-themed resort hotel and casino.
Adelson created a charitable foundation which is divided into two branches. Including the Adelson Family Foundation, which was established in 2007, and the Adelson Medical Research Foundation. Since being developed, the $260 Million has been donated to the charity. This has helped medics and helping lives of young Jewish people. In 2009 his fortune went from $30 billion to $2 billion, a drop of 93%. However Adelson expressed that there is ‘No Such Thing as Fear’ to an Entrepreneur. “So I lost $25 billion,” he said. “I started out with zero.” His business recovered, and he was ranked as the world’s 16th-richest man with a net worth of $23.3 billion.
Adelson continues to inspire many with his ways of never giving up and remembering your starting point. Click here to Read Larry Page: Becoming A Billionaire Entrepreneur.