What a difference 20 years (and £75bn) makes!
HE lOOKS set to overtake Bill Gates as the world’s richest man - but Amazon chief Jeff Bezos looks like he’s also had an image overhaul.
As the online giant unveiled its new app service, Bezos, 53, caused a stir with his macho new look – particularly as it is in such contrast to his previous nerdy appearance when Amazon started out in the mid-90s. Back then Bezos ran the business from a garage at a house he had rented in Seattle.
Social media sites went into a frenzy as they compared Bezos – who is worth around £75bn – with his previous image. Many remarked how the father of four looked younger and notably more muscular at a tech conference in Idaho. It is thought Bezos has become a health nut and regularly works out.
‘Congratulations Jeff Bezos on your change in personal brand from “business ascetic” to “prefers killing with his bare hands,” ’ one commented.
Amazon has just launched Spark in the US, a social network that identifies products that appear in pictures and lets users click through to buy them. Users of the service are asked to pick subjects they like, such as books, technology or food, and will then be shown pictures others have shared of them.
Economist Albert Ruiz added: ‘ Jeff Bezos looks like he just stepped off the set of Fast And The Furious.’
Bezos famously wrote the business plan for Amazon while driving from New York to Seattle. He originally listed 20 things he wanted to sell – but chose just books.