In 1962, he borrowed money to buy a $5,000 truck and acquire 20 commercial clients, then founded Southern Sanitation Service. This formed the beginning of his career, which spanned waste collection, video rentals, and auto sales, as published in the 2001 Academy of Management Executive article titled Wayne Huizenga: Entrepreneur and wealth creator . The entrepreneurial path of Harry Wayne Huizenga started with garbage collection, using one truck and one route among commercial customers in Florida.
In 2000, AutoNation ranked 63 on the Fortune 500 list, according to the above-mentioned article. He was born in Illinois in 1937, but moved with his family to Fort Lauderdale in 1953. Before entering into business, he spent his summers working for the family’s garbage company, served in the army, drove a bulldozer, and studied for three semesters at Calvin College in Michigan , The Washington Post reported in its 2018 obituary. The company went public in 1971. Huizenga relinquished control of operations in 1984, when The Washington Post estimated his worth at $21 million. Huizenga acquired a string of 19 video-rental stores in 1987 and built Blockbuster to become one of the most successful companies in the video industry. The company was sold to Viacom in 1994 for $8.5 billion, according to the 2001 article. During the peak of home-video rentals, Blockbuster had about 4,000 stores. The Washington Post reported that Huizenga made a profit of $8.4 billion on an investment of $18 million. In 1996, Huizenga created AutoNation, a superstore for new and used cars.
Huizenga first acquired a minority share, took control, and then expanded the chain worldwide, according to the Washington Post. Huizenga expanded his original trash hauling company to success by merging Southern Sanitation with a company run by his widowed aunts to establish Waste Management Inc., which grew into the world’s largest waste collection and disposal company. He later entered the video-rental and automobile retail businesses, building Blockbuster and AutoNation into major companies. Unlike the businesses that he built, Huizenga’s journey into business wasn’t as smooth. Through the merger that formed Waste Management Company, Huizenga’s expanding venture in Florida and the Chicago-based business belonging to his family came together. Huizenga’s retirement did not last long; after five weeks, he was back in business, investing in real estate, hotels, and other companies before venturing into video rentals. the company rapidly emerged as the largest retail automobile dealership in the country Although Huizenga had never personally sold a car.
