Former Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh Passed Away
The Claim
Former Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh died at age 46.
News posted on
Emerging story
Many on social media are posting condolences for Tony Hsieh, former CEO of Zappos, claiming he has passed away.
Misbar’s Analysis
Misbar has discovered that Hsieh died on November 27, 2020 at the age of 46. According to CNN.com, Hsieh died from injuries sustained in a house fire that occurred in Connecticut while he was visiting family. Hsieh was best known for his leadership of online shoe and clothing retailer Zappos. He was a Harvard University graduate who joined the company — then called ShoeSite.com — in 1999. Zappos was sold to Amazon for $1.2 billion in 2009, but Hsieh had remained with the company until his retirement.
Beyond his brilliance in ecommerce, Hsieh was also loved by many in the circles he traveled. According to Forbes.com, Tony’s mission in life was to bring smiles and happiness to people everywhere he went. In 2010, Hsieh published a bestselling book, Delivering Happiness.
According to NYTimes.com, Hsieh was born on Dec. 12, 1973, in Illinois to Richard and Judy Hsieh, immigrants from Taiwan who met in graduate school at the University of Illinois. His father was a chemical engineer and his mother was a social worker. The family moved to California when Tony was 5. Survivors include his parents and his brothers Andy and Dave. Tony Hsieh was never married.
