Jeff Bezos’ reason for still driving a 1997 Honda Accord after becoming a billionaire makes a lot of sense
- Jeff Bezos was still driving his 1997 Honda Accord in 2013
- Yes, he was already a billionaire
- He’s spoken out on why
Published on Sep 09, 2024 at 2:27 PM (UTC+4)
by Amelia Jean Hershman-Jones
Last updated on Sep 10, 2024 at 11:10 AM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Tom Wood
Jeff Bezos might now fly and sail in luxury, but he was still driving his 1997 Honda Accord in 2013.
He was already a very wealthy man by that point.
He’s spoken out on why, as a billionaire, he didn’t upgrade sooner.
Honestly, it makes a lot of sense.
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The billionaire driving a 1997 Honda Accord
He might have founded Amazon.com Inc. and flit between the first and second spot of Forbes Real Time Billionaire list – but the car he was driving in 2013 was remarkably modest.
The current world number two according to Brad Stone’s, The Everything Store, continued driving a 1997 Honda Accord.
It’s in stark contrast to his recent purchase of a $80 million Gulfstream G700 private jet.
He also owns a $500 million superyacht with eyewatering upkeep costs.
Earlier this year, Jeff Bezos acquired a third mansion on the exclusive Billionaire Bunker Island for $90 million.
That’s not to mention the $42 million he spent building a clock that will outlast human civilization.
His reasoning for the car? “
This is a perfectly good car,” he said in a 60 Minutes interview with Bob Simon in 1999.
While Amazon was a 5-year-old online bookstore at the time – it was still eyebrow-raising due to his then net worth of about $8 billion.
Other frugal facts about Jeff Bezos
Amazon’s headquarters were, at the time, sitting between a heroin needle exchange and a pornography store.
Simon, seeing also Bezos’s desk made from a wooden door and 4x4s, asked why he hadn’t moved the office to a swanky location.
Bezos replied: “It’s a symbol of spending money on things that matter to customers.
An approach that sits aligned with one of Amazon’s core leadership principles: “Accomplish more with less. Constraints breed resourcefulness, self-sufficiency and invention.”
London-based Amelia cut her journalistic teeth covering all things lifestyle, wellness, and luxury in the UK capital. Fast-forward a decade and the senior content writer and editor has put pen to paper for glossy magazines, busy newsrooms, and coveted brands. When her OOO is on from writing about cars and heading up on-site SEO you can find her spending quality time with her young family, in the gym, or exploring the city she loves.
