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Who Is Mackenzie Bezos? She Could Soon Be The Richest Woman In The World

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Great Women

Who Is Mackenzie Bezos? She Could Soon Be The Richest Woman In The World

January 23, 2019

After 25 years of marriage, Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos, the world’s richest man, announced on Jan 9 that he and his wife MacKenzie are splitting. 

The couple said in a statement on Twitter that they shared “such a great life together as a married couple”, and “though the labels might be different, we remain a family, and we remain cherished friends”.

 

 
 
 
 
 
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A post shared by El Dailybreak (@el_dailybreak) on Jan 10, 2019 at 1:25pm PST


 

You can read their full statement here:

pic.twitter.com/Gb10BDb0x0

— Jeff Bezos (@JeffBezos) 9 January 2019

READ MORE:
The 5 Golden Rules Of A Long-Lasting Marriage
Lessons To Learn From Jacelyn Tay’s Divorce
Jacelyn Tay, Park Eun Hye And More Celebrities Who Divorced In 2018

But wait, would the divorce make Mackenzie the richest woman in the world?

Thanks to his stake in Amazon, the 54-yearold entrepreneur has an estimated net worth of US$137 billion (that’s S$185 billion) and topped Forbes’ list last year of the richest Americans and the list of billionaires worldwide.

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Jeff has often credited Mackenzie, 48, for her support when he founded Amazon, which grew from an online bookseller to one of the world’s largest retailers.

She was there in the company’s early years, when Jeff was drafting Amazon’s business plan, even as she pursued her dream of being an author. Here are eight things you probably didn’t know about Mackenzie:

https://www.womensweekly.com.sg/gallery/great-women/mackenzie-bezos-world-richest-woman-amazon-ceo/
Who Is Mackenzie Bezos? She Could Soon Be The Richest Woman In The World
1. She's a Princeton graduate who has authored two books
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Mackenzie grew up in San Francisco as the daughter of a financial planner and a housewife. She studied English at Princeton University, where she was an assistant to American novelist and Pulitzer Prize winner Toni Morrison.

It took her a decade before she published her debut novel, The Testing Of Luther Albright, in 2005. The psychological thriller set in Sacramento, California, won the 2005 American Book Award, and it was described by the New York Times as “quietly absorbing”. Her second book, Traps, is a tale of four women who meet on a road trip to Las Vegas.

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A post shared by Coco Coco (@insightswithcoco) on Jan 12, 2019 at 8:07am PST

2. She met Jeff at a New York hedge fund and fell in love with his laugh
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When Mackenzie was trying for a job at New York hedge fund D. E. Shaw & Co in 1993, the first person to interview her at the firm turned out to be Jeff, who was then a senior vice-president. She got the job as a research associate.

In a 2013 interview with Vogue magazine, she was quoted as saying: “My office was next door to his, and all day long, I listened to that fabulous laugh. How could you not fall in love with that laugh?”

Then 23 years old, told the magazine that she made the first move to woo her future husband by suggesting lunch.

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A post shared by Mackenzie Bezos (@mackenziebez) on Jan 10, 2019 at 4:37am PST

3. It was a whirlwind romance
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Within three months of their lunch date, the couple got engaged. And another three months later, they tied the knot. Shortly after, Jeff began working on his idea of an online bookseller, and the young couple took the plunge by uprooting their lives in New York to move to Seattle.

Mackenzie told Vogue in 2013: “I have no business sense whatsoever, but I saw how excited he was.”

According to a 1996 Wall Street Journal report, it was she who drove them across the country in 1994, with their dog Kamala in tow. Jeff was next to her “tapping out a business plan on his computer along the way”, according to tech magazine Wired.

The pair first lived in a one-bedroom rental in downtown Seattle.

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A post shared by M E G A H E D, E S Q. Inc. (@mylegalwarrior) on Jan 16, 2019 at 2:43pm PST

4. She was one of Amazon's earliest employees and Jeff's greatest support
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Mackenzie was considered one of Amazon’s earliest employees when the firm was founded in 1994. She helped with the accounting in its first year. According to Wired, she was also responsible for negotiating Amazon’s first freight contracts.

Jeff has always been outspoken about his wife’s unwavering support during that period: “When you have loving and supportive people in your life, like MacKenzie, my parents, my grandfather, my grandmother, you end up being able to take risks.”

The couple have four children: three boys and an adopted girl from China.

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A post shared by Mackenzie Bezos (@mackenziebez) on Jan 10, 2019 at 4:37am PST

5. She left a scathing Amazon review on Jeff's biography
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Mackenzie made headlines in November 2014 when she left a one-star review of The Everything Store: Jeff Bezos And Amazon, a book about her husband written by American author Brad Stone.

She was among those who left scathing reviews on the book’s Amazon site, claiming that the book had several factual errors, even as some 60 per cent gave it five stars.

“I was there when he wrote the business plan, and I worked with him and many others represented in the converted garage, the basement warehouse closet, the barbecue-scented offices, the Christmas-rush distribution centres, and the door-desk filled conference rooms in the early years of Amazon’s history,” she wrote in the review.

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A post shared by Infobae America (@infobaeamerica) on Jan 10, 2019 at 12:15pm PST

6. She started an anti-bullying campaign
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In 2004, Mackenzie started anti-bullying organisation Bystander Revolution, which has a website offering advice from students and even celebrities. As the executive director, she said that her goal was to spread “simple habits of kindness, courage, and inclusion”.

She wanted the website, which features videos and interviews, to be a resource for the average person to stop bullying.

“No matter who you are or what you’re facing, you can find personal stories, suggestions, and encouragement from someone who has dealt with a similar issue,” the website said.

Together with her husband, Mrs Bezos launched the Day One Fund in 2018 to help homeless families and build pre-schools for low-income communities.

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A post shared by Bystander Revolution (@bystanderrevolution) on Feb 12, 2016 at 10:52am PST

7. She could become the world's richest woman
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Mackenzie could become the world’s richest woman with the divorce, reported local and international news outlets.

Washington DC divorce lawyer Sandy Ain told The Washington Post that the area where the Bezos family resides is a “common property” state, which means that all the assets and debts accumulated during their marriage would be divided equally. Sandy does not represent Jeff or Mackenzie in their split, but has handled high-profile divorce cases among the rich in the past.

With Jeff being the richest person in the world, a 50/50 agreement would result in the biggest recorded divorce settlement, reported The Washington Post.

This could mean that Mackenzie could walk away from the divorce with about US$66 billion, making her the richest woman in the world, according to CNBC.

Currently, Ms Francoise Bettencourt Meyers, the granddaughter of the founder of cosmetics manufacturer L’Oreal, is the richest woman in the world, with a net worth of US$45.6 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, a ranking of the world’s 500 richest people.

However, a divorce lawyer told CNBC that a 50/50 split is unlikely, as Mr Bezos’ wealth is tied to him continuing to have a controlling stake in Amazon. The couple or Amazon have yet to comment on the likely division of their assets.

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A post shared by KhasTainment (@khastainment) on Jan 9, 2019 at 5:55pm PST

8. Was she dumped for a former TV anchor?
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Soon after Jeff and Mackenzie revealed their plan to divorce, new reports have suggested that Jeff has been in a secret relationship with Lauren Sanchez, a former TV anchor and the estranged wife of Hollywood talent mogul Patrick Whitesell.

The New York Post’s celebrity news site Page Six reported that Jeff made the divorce announcement on Wednesday believing that photos of himself and Lauren could soon be made public.

The report said that Jeff got to know Lauren, a former anchor of television channel Fox’s Good Day LA, through her soon-to-be former husband Patrick. He is considered one of Hollywood’s most powerful men, as the agent to stars such as Matt Damon and Christian Bale.

Jeff and Lauren reportedly became closer after her separation from Patrick.

READ MORE:
Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt And Other Expensive Celeb Divorces
The Relationship Habits That Could Potentially Lead To Divorce
10 Most Shocking Celebrity Cheating Scandals

Text: Ng Huiwen, The Straits Times

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A post shared by Fern (@fern_crespo) on Jan 11, 2019 at 6:01am PST

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  • amazon
  • celebrity divorces
  • divorce
  • mackenzie bezos
  • powerful women
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