Who is Edward Joe Shoen?

Edward Joe Shoen is a prominent American billionaire entrepreneur and currently serves as the president and chairman of Amerco. Amerco is the parent entity of U-Haul, RepWest Insurance Company, Amerco Real Estate Company, and Oxford Life Insurance Company. The origins of U-Haul trace back to 1945, when his parents, Leonard and Anna Mary Shoen, identified a market need for one-way trailers and truck rentals.

Born on October 28, 1949, Joe faced personal tragedy early in life, losing his mother in 1957 at the age of 34. Each of her six children inherited a portion of her 50% stake in U-Haul. Leonard remarried several times, adding seven more children to the family.

Joe pursued higher education, graduating from Harvard Business School in 1973 with an MBA. While at Harvard, he authored a paper analyzing the economics of the self-storage industry. Subsequently, he joined U-Haul alongside several of his siblings. However, differing visions for the company's future led to significant tensions within the family.

In 1978, after becoming frustrated with internal disputes, Joe left U-Haul to attend law school at Arizona State University. He also founded Space Age Auto Paint, a business that specializes in automotive paint products, which remains a significant customer of U-Haul today.

Tensions Rise: The Business Coup

Leonard Shoen and his eldest son, Sam, sought to diversify U-Haul's offerings, aiming to transform it into a one-stop shop for rentals, including Jet Skis and party supplies. However, this strategy diluted the company's focus and negatively affected revenues, resulting in substantial layoffs.

Dissatisfied with the company's trajectory, Joe orchestrated a corporate coup in 1986, forcing his father into retirement and alienating most of his siblings. Joe ascended to the role of chairman, while Sam continued as CEO. Unfortunately, Joe's actions to oust Sam led to a series of contentious legal battles, culminating in a lawsuit from Sam and Leonard against Joe in 1988. In retaliation, Joe annulled his father's lifetime employment contract.

Tragedy Strikes

Amid the ongoing legal disputes, tragedy struck when Sam's wife, Eva Berg Shoen, was murdered at their home in August 1990. Leonard suspected his son Joe's involvement and requested an investigation into the murder. However, authorities later apprehended a serial rapist named Frank Marquis, ruling out any connection to the Shoen family.

As tensions mounted, a court ordered Joe to pay his father a staggering $1.48 billion. Despite the turmoil, Joe remained steadfast in his leadership, guiding the company to go public in 1994, with shares initially priced at $15.83. He adeptly navigated the company through bankruptcy in 2004, which led to the aforementioned settlement with Leonard.

Leonard spent his last two decades in solitude in Las Vegas, where he tragically took his own life in 1999.

U-Haul's Expansion Strategy

In a bid to stay relevant and broaden its customer base, U-Haul acquired Collegeboxes, a company founded in 1997 by Paychex's Jim Wayman, which rapidly attracted 15,000 customers.

The Frugal Nature of the Shoen Family

The Shoen family is often noted for their frugality. Joe has been known to insist that employees stay in budget accommodations, sharing rooms. In a notable incident reported by Fox News in 2018, allegations arose that Joe's wife abandoned several sick Rottweilers at a pet-adoption charity.

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