Edward Lampert - Biography

Edward S. "Eddie" Lampert (born July 19, 1962) is an American businessman and investor. He is the chairman of Sears Holdings Corporation (SHLD) and founder, chairman, and CEO of ESL Investments. Until May, 2007 he was a director of AutoNation, Inc. He previously served as a director of AutoZone, Inc. from July 1999 to October 2006.

Early Life and Education

Lampert graduated from Yale University in 1984 (B.A., economics, summa cum laude), where he was a member of Skull and Bones and Phi Beta Kappa.

Business Career

In July 1984, Lampert worked as an intern at Goldman Sachs, and then worked in the firm's risk arbitrage department from March 1985 to February 1988. While there, he worked directly with Robert Rubin. When Lampert decided to go out on his own, Rubin warned him it would be a bad career decision.

In April 1988, Lampert left the bank to form ESL Investments, based in Greenwich, Connecticut (The name ESL derives from Lampert's initials). Richard Rainwater, whom Lampert had met on Nantucket Island, gave him $28 million in seed money and introduced him to clients, such as David Geffen.

Lampert's investment style can best be described as "concentrated value", often focusing on the retail sector. Lampert typically holds his investments for several years and usually has between three and fifteen stocks in his portfolio. His investment style has drawn comparisons to the financier Warren Buffett. Lampert is credited with forming and merging Kmart and Sears into Sears Holdings.

Lampert's earnings in 2004 were estimated to be $1.02 billion, making him the first Wall Street financial manager to exceed an income of $1 billion in a single year. In 2006, Lampert was the richest person in Connecticut with a net worth of $3.8 billion.

Lampert's earnings in 2006 were estimated to be from $1.0 billion to $1.5 billion.

Kidnapping

In 2003, Lampert was kidnapped from the parking lot of his Greenwich office, but was able to convince his captors to let him go after two days of captivity.

External links

• SHC: Chairman's Messages to Shareholders (Previous years)
• Cramer, James J., Blue-Light Specialist: A conversation with Eddie Lampert, New York magazine (December 6, 2004)
• Edward S. Lampert of ESL Investments explains his thinking on the Kmart deal
• The man behind the deal, CNNMoney.com (November 17, 2004)