Two Thousand Dollars and an Empire

A man who once said he wouldn't give a hundred dollars for every car in the country ended up building the company that would define the automobile industry for the next century. On September 16, 1908, William Crapo Durant filed paperwork in Trenton, New Jersey, incorporating General Motors for a modest $2,000, less than two weeks later, the new company had raised more than $12 million in stock and begun absorbing rival automakers one after another. Durant, who'd made his first fortune in horse-drawn carriages, applied the same playbook to cars: buy up the competition rather than out-invent it. The episode follows that strategy from its fast start through the bankers who forced Durant out in 1910, his comeback through Chevrolet, and the empire that outlasted him.From bsnsHistory, the daily podcast about the moments when business quietly reshaped the world.Written and hosted by Ron Trucks. Research and editing by Rodney Russ. Sound design by Angela Cahoy. Music by Cody Martin and Soundstripe.For more daily business stories, visit www.bsnsDAILYpodcasts.com