4 thinkers, books, and ideas connected to this field.
American banana entrepreneur who built a banana trading company from nothing — working alongside his employees, traveling to the fields, and operating with extreme hands-on intensity — before staging a shareholder revolt to take control of United Fruit Company, the much larger company he had sold his business to.
Russian-American entrepreneur who built United Fruit Company from scratch by outsmarting the established banana monopoly, overthrew a Central American government to protect his business interests, and eventually took over United Fruit itself after his company was absorbed.
Rich Cohen's 2012 biography of Sam Zemurray — the Russian immigrant who transformed United Fruit into the world's most powerful banana company and staged a corporate coup that gave him control of Central America — a story about obsession, corruption, and the power of will.
American multinational corporation that dominated the banana trade in Central America in the first half of the 20th century — controlling transportation, land, and political systems across multiple countries, earning the term 'Banana Republic' for its political capture of host governments.