Stephen Schwarzman: From Mowing Lawns to Building Blackstone – A Remarkable Journey

Stephen Schwarzman pursued a BA from Yale University and later obtained an MBA degree from Harvard University.

Stephen Schwarzman is the Chairman, CEO and Co-Founder of Blackstone, one of the world’s largest alternative investment firms. Blackstone has over $1 trillion (Rs 75 lakh crore) in Assets Under Management. Today, he is America’s one of most successful billionaire businessmen, and philanthropists whose first business venture was land mowing at the age of 14.

Stephen Schwarzman was raised in a Jewish family in Pennsylvania. His father used to own a dry goods store in Philadelphia. At the age of 14, he employed his younger twin brothers to help mow a lawn, while Stephen brought in clients. From early on, he had the right skill set to establish his own business. He joined the most prestigious Ivy League research university- Yale University and pursued a Bachelor of Arts degree. Interestingly, when Stephen Schwarzman was a student at Yale University, he studied with a former USA President named George W Bush. Both of them were members of a secret society called Skull and Bones. He briefly served in the US Army Reserve and then joined Harvard Business School to pursue a degree in Master of Business Administration (MBA).

Stephen Schwarzman has been involved in all phases of Blackstone’s development since its founding in 1985. It is a global leader in traditional buyouts, growth equity, special situations and secondary investing, and real estate. It is currently the largest owner of commercial property in the world. It is a global leader and provides credit for companies of all sizes. The company also has dedicated businesses for infrastructure and life sciences.

According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, as of October 2022, he had a net worth of $32 billion (approx Rs 2.67 lakh crore). In 2014 and 2016, Stephen Schwarzman was named one of Bloomberg’s 50 Most Influential People of the Year.