15. Express Convenience
At Yale in 1965, economics student Frederick Smith outlined a delivery system based on a “hub and spoke”s” model in a term paper, a concept that later became the foundation for FedEx. The paper, according to rumor, earned a ‘C’ and left no memorable mark on his professor, who thought it would never work.
While Smith’s own recollection of the grade was hazy, he wryly noted it wasn’t one of his best works. Post-graduation, Smith served in Vietnam before returning to establish Federal Express in 1971, breathing life into his college proposal.