Patrick Byrne, Overstock.com

Company: Overstock.com, Salt Lake City, UT
Company Description: Overstock.com, Inc. (short cut: O.CO) is a Savings Engine offering brand-name merchandise at discount prices. The company offers its customers an opportunity to shop for bargains conveniently, while offering its suppliers an alternative inventory distribution channel.
Nomination Category: Management Awards Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Executive of the Year - All Other Industries

Nomination Title: Patrick Byrne, CEO

Tell the story about what this nominee achieved since January 1 2010 (up to 500 words). Focus on specific accomplishments, and relate these accomplishments to past performance or industry norms. Be sure to mention obstacles overcome, innovations or discoveries made, and outcomes:

Under Patrick Byrne’s leadership, the Overstock.com’s annual revenue has grown from $1.8 million in 1999 to over a billion dollars in 2010. In 2011 Patrick spearheaded the launch of the O.CO domain name for Overstock.com. With the launch of the O.CO, Overstock.com has started the beginning of a rebrand as the “Savings Engine” of the internet.

Expanding Business Units: Since January 2010 Patrick Byrne has helped small businesses across the U.S. with the Launch of The Main Street Revolution Store, a partnership between Overstock.com and small and minority-owned business owners across the United States. Patrick said. "The Main Street Store creates a national marketing and distribution channel for small businesses by providing them a way to sell their products easily and inexpensively. It is also a place where consumers can contribute to the national recovery by buying products made by entrepreneurs throughout the U.S. It's the new way to shop local." To date the Main Street Revolution Store has helped over 130 vendors across the U.S. and currently carries over 3,500 products. In August of 2010, Patrick helped launch Overstock’s new private sales site EZIBA. Overstock.com has relationships with a large network of suppliers, who are in search of different avenues to sell product. Patrick believed it was a natural progression for the “O” to build a private sale site."

Corporate Social Responsibility: In September 2010 Worldstock, Overstock.com’s socially responsible store for products handcrafted by artisans from developing nations and rural areas of the USA, celebrated its 9 year anniversary and has continued to grow and has returned over 60 million dollars to artisan suppliers around the world. A self- described “classical liberal,” Patrick believes that our nation’s future depends primarily on a sound educational system and a healthy capital market. Towards those ends, Patrick serves as chairman of the Milton & Rose Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice, supporting legislative reform to bring educational choice to parents. Patrick has also founded over 20 schools internationally that currently educate more than 6,000 combined students.

Recognition: Under Patrick’s leadership this year, Overstock.com has received the following awards: The top place to work in retail in the nation and one of the top ten places to work in business in general as ranked by glassdoor.com and Forbes, ranked in the top five for the last five years in customer service as ranked by the National Retail Federation and American Express, and sales department of the year.

List hyperlinks to any online news stories, press releases, or other documents that support the claims made in the section above. IMPORTANT: Begin each link with http://, and enclose each link in square brackets; for example, [http://www.youraddress.com]:

Provide a brief (up to 100 words) biography about the nominee:

Patrick Michael Byrne is chairman and CEO of Overstock.com Inc., a Utah-based internet retailer. Under Patrick’s leadership the company’s annual revenue has grown from $1.8 million in 1999 to over a billion in 2010. He received a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and Asian studies from Dartmouth College, a master’s in philosophy from Cambridge University as a Marshall Scholar, and a doctorate in philosophy from Stanford University. After surviving cancer, he cycled across the country four times to raise awareness and record-breaking funds for cancer research at the Dana Farber Cancer. Patrick also founded over 20 schools internationally that educate more than 6,000 combined students.

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Patrick Byrne, Overstock.com