Europe EditionFred Smith, FedEx Founder Who Revolutionized Logistics Dies at 80
- Fred Smith, the visionary who established FedEx and served as its executive chairman, passed away at the age of 80 on June 21, 2025.
- Smith founded Federal Express in 1971 and officially launched it in 1973 from Memphis, driven by his vision of overnight delivery.
- FedEx grew into a global logistics giant operating 705 aircraft, 200,000 vehicles, employing over 500,000 people and handling 17 million daily shipments.
- Smith stepped down as FedEx CEO in June 2022, with Raj Subramaniam succeeding him and calling Smith 'the heart and soul of FedEx.'
- Smith's death drew widespread condolences, with local leaders calling it an incalculable loss to Memphis and highlighting his transformative impact on global commerce.
314 Articles
314 Articles
Fred Smith, FedEx’s billionaire founder and CEO, dies at 80
Frederick W. Smith, who revolutionized express delivery as the founder and longtime chief executive of FedEx, a company that became so ubiquitous its name gained currency as a verb, died June 21 in Memphis. He was 80.
FedEx founder and courier pioneer dies at 80
Frederick W. “Fred” Smith, the trailblazing founder of FedEx and a key figure in the transformation of global logistics, has died at the age of 80. He passed away on June 21 at his home in Memphis, surrounded by family. Mr Smith founded Federal Express in 1973 when he was FedUp with how long the Postal service was taking (sorry, I really couldn’t help myself)! He then came up with a crazy idea… Source
Remembering FedEx CEO Fred Smith
The last time I saw Fred Smith was just a few weeks ago, at a meeting in Nashville. We were taking a quick break from an intense dialogue with leaders across the political spectrum. Fred had been calling for dialogue, for common ground, for a way forward. The room was loud, full of opinions. As we got up, Fred took me aside to coach me, as he often did: “Now is the time to lead with our values,” he told me. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] That…
Vietnam veteran and billionaire founder of FedEx Frederick W. Smith dies at 80
To start the company we know today as FedEx, Frederick W. Smith took a step that many entrepreneurs do. He used a combination of his family’s money, as well as the approximately $690 million (in 2025 dollars) in venture capital. To keep the firm going, he tried what no entrepreneur would recommend: he took the last of his money to Las Vegas. The initial fleet of Federal Express’ aircraft consisted of 14 jets that served 25 cities across the coun…
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