TYCOON: Life Lessons From Ari Onassis

We must free ourselves of the hope that the sea will ever rest. We must learn to sail in high winds.

-Ari Onassis

Ari Onassis was one of the world’s richest and most famous men who made a fortune as a shipping magnate.

His empire included:

The largest privately-owned shipping fleet in the world
Shares in 95 multinational businesses in 5 continents
Apartments in Paris, London, Monte Carlo, Athens, and Acapulco
Gold processing plants in Argentina and Uruguay
A private island in Greece called Skorpios
Bank accounts in 217 different banks
A super-yacht named Christina O
A castle in the south of France
A chemical company in Persia
Olympic tower in Manhattan
An airline (Olympic Airways)

Table of Contents

How Did He Get Started?

Ari was born in Greece in 1906.

His dad was a successful shipping entrepreneur who sent him to a private school.

Then, the Greco-Turkish war hit in 1919, causing his entire family to become refugees.

To escape the chaos, he moved to Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1923.

While on the boat over there, he snuck into first class.

When he was caught the security said:

“You don’t belong here”.

To which he responded:

“Yes, I do”.

And this would serve as an important reference experience for the rest of his life.

When he arrived in Argentina, he got his first job as a telephone operator.

This taught him about commerce and port-duty administration, which inspired him to start an import-export company.

His Product?

British-Turkish Tobacco.

(An evergreen market).

This allowed him to detach money from time and to attain his freedom.

“You are not truly wealthy unless you earn money while you’re sleeping.

-Ari Onassis

As this fortune grew, he expanded worldwide and relocated his HQ to NYC.

How He Built His Empire

Ari built up a fleet of freighters and tankers that exceeded 70+ vessels.

His edge was operating his fleet under “flags of convenience”, where laws and regulations were more loose than those of the owners’ country.

(He used Panamanian + Liberian flags to sail tax free while operating at a low cost).

“The secret of business is to know something no one else knows.”

-Ari Onassis

This allowed him to carve out a niche and make massive profits in a “saturated” + competitive market.

He also signed long-term contracts with big oil companies like Mobil and Texaco at fixed prices before the market fell.

(Played the long game).

Then, He Set His Sights On Monaco

Using shell companies from the tax haven of Panama, Ari started buying shares in Monaco’s SBM.

This was Monaco’s main company which owned:

The Monte Carlo Casino
The Monaco Yacht Club
The Hotel De Paris
And 1/3 Of The Country’s Land

His takeover was complete within a year.

Then he started to focus on elevating his influence + social life.

And He Did This By Having An Attractive Home Base

His center base was his super-yacht, the Christina O.

The ship had tons of statement-making features which included:

Bar stools made out of whale penis
Large ornate interiors with elaborate luxuries
A mosaic swimming pool that can be drained and raised to double as a dance floor

It caught the attention of tons of important people and served as a networking tool.

John Wayne
Frank Sinatra
Umberto Agnelli
John F. Kennedy
Winston Churchill

This is a similar strategy used by Hugh Hefner (with his Playboy mansion).

Ari Recognized The Power Of Being Around The Right Conversations

One lunch with Winston Churchill is worth 4 years at Oxford.

-Ari Onassis

This was his main motivation for elevating his social game.

He Also Understood The Power Of Appearances

“Appearances count.

Always look as if you’ve just come back from somewhere expensive.

Maintain an elegant address even if you have to live in the attic.

Be seen in smart restaurants (even if you nurse just one drink)

Never nickel when short of cash

Borrow big, but always repay promptly.”

-Ari Onassis

This is how you increase your luck.

Failures

Ari’s biggest wins also led to his biggest failures.

His empire had grown so big that his biz moves were starting to interfere with monopolies set by the US government.

1 such example was the Arabian-American oil co having a monopoly on Saudi oil.

When Ari was trying to make a tanker transport deal with the king of Saudi, the US gov intervened.

(The deal would have ended monopoly control of Saudi oil by the US).

The US charged him with fraud, to which he entered a plea bargain of $7 million.

Mob boss Michael Franzese also made a similar mistake by trying to under-cut the US gov on gas.

Conclusion

Make money with arbitrage
Operating via loopholes few know about allows you to win in competitive + “saturated” markets
Own an engaging environment people want to be a part of.
Put yourself around the right conversations.
Use appearances to increase luck / position and to attract opportunity.
Don’t fuck with the gov’s cash cow + root of power

Want to learn more about how to apply these strategies?