From a $27,500 Charter Company to a $4 Billion Private Jet Giant | Kenn Ricci, Flexjet
· 1 h 11 min · Episode 50
Episode From a $27,500 Charter Company to a $4 Billion Private Jet Giant | Kenn Ricci, Flexjet
Kenn Ricci is the chairman and largest shareholder of Flexjet, a fractional private jet company that operates more than 360 aircraft and is the largest Gulfstream operator in the world. A former Air Force-trained pilot, Kenn bought a small Cleveland charter company in his twenties so he could keep flying, built it into Flight Options, lost control of it to Raytheon in 2002, and bought it back during the 2008 financial crisis before acquiring Flexjet from Bombardier in 2014. He explains how Warren Buffett’s purchase of NetJets unlocked his financing, why he avoids mergers, why he has kept Flexjet private, and why he gave his children their wealth early through a family limited partnership. He also shares the advice from Notre Dame’s Father Ted Hesburgh that shaped his idea of a life of significance, and why every Flexjet employee can fix a customer’s problem without approval.
Show notes: https://www.davidsenra.com/episode/kenn-ricci
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Chapters
(00:00:00) Kenn's son had never flown commercial
(00:02:34) Giving your kids their wealth while you're alive
(00:07:03) Charlie Munger: "You give them the money"
(00:15:57) The rule his kids made to avoid jealousy
(00:25:36) Buying a failed charter company for $27,500
(00:35:05) Turned down by every bank until Buffett bought NetJets
(00:39:33) $100 million in sales in 3 months
(00:41:36) Why he hates mergers
(00:42:58) Losing his company: the worst day of his life
(00:52:15) Buying his company back in the financial crisis
(00:56:08) The $600 million problem that led to Gulfstream
(01:03:01) Father Hesburgh's 3 rules for a life of significance
(01:05:47) Why he gave away everything he owned
(01:09:57) Why any employee can comp a $300,000 trip
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