Reginald Lewis: Early life, TLC Beatrice, and Legacy

Early Life and Influences

• Reginald Lewis spent his summers in East Hampton.
• Lewis's book and legacy significantly impacted the interviewer's life and the lives of his descendants.
• In 1987, at the height of the recession, Lewis engineered the largest close to a billion leveraged buyout of TLC Beatrice International Foods.
• TLC Beatrice International Foods consisted of 64 companies in 31 countries.
• Lewis was accepted to Harvard Law School without applying.
• He established the first African-American law firm on Wall Street.
• The Reginald Lewis International Law Center stands in Harvard Law School
• In 1992, Lewis was one of the 400 wealthiest men in the United States, according to Forbes magazine.
• Lewis initially aimed to become the wealthiest black man in America.
• Lewis was born to Carolyn Cooper and Clinton Lewis in Baltimore, Maryland.
• Lewis's mother took him to his grandparents, Sam and Sevilla Cooper, when he was five years old due to family issues.
• Lewis overheard his mother reassuring his grandfather that they would pay their way.
• His mother worked two jobs, ensuring he was presentable when she returned home.
• The grandmother, a cleaning woman, instilled in him a sense of self-confidence and responsibility.
• The white lady instilled the confidence in him
• She ensured that the young Lewis always had something to occupy himself with whilst acting as babysitter
• The grandfather, a head waiter, taught him the value of saving money.
• His grandmother Sue taught him how to save and not spend everything
• She taught him the importance of saving via a Coca-Cola savings bottle

Education and Early Career

• At four years old, Lewis had a paper round delivering the Afro-American newspaper.
• He sold the paper route to his best friend at age twelve in a leveraged buyout deal.
• At age seven, Lewis expressed his ambition to become a lawyer.
• Lewis's mother ensured he looked presentable, influencing his later immaculate dress sense.
• Lewis attended a Catholic school before transitioning to Dunbar High School.
• He chose Dunbar for its strong programs in political science and sports.
• Lewis received a football scholarship to Virginia State University, where my wife went
• Lewis lost the scholarship after hurting his shoulder in the first year.
• He created a detailed schedule to balance work and academics, aiming to become a good lawyer.
• Lewis's mantra was "to be a good lawyer, you have to work hard."

Reginald Lewis Early Life and Education

• Reginald Lewis was accepted into Harvard Law School in 1965 without formally applying, during the height of the Civil Rights Movement.
• Harvard Law School had Frank Sanders, a professor who escaped Germany and later London, sought to involve the school in the Civil Rights Movement.
• Sanders aimed to expose African Americans to law, as few had lawyer fathers.
• Harvard Law School reached out to historically black colleges and universities, inviting their best students to a program.
• The goal was for these students to return and promote the study of law.
• Reginald campaigned and persisted until a professor included him as the fifth student, exceeding the quota of four.
• He participated in an eight-week summer program.
• Sanders advocated for Lewis's admission to Harvard Law School without requiring a formal application due to his performance, especially in moot court.
• Harvard initially hounded Lewis for tuition money, giving him a loan of $1,500, which he repaid with $3 million 20 years later

Harvard Law School Experience and Influences

• Lewis found Harvard intimidating because classmates had deep knowledge in various subjects.
• He formed a multi-racial study group to discuss cases, helping him prepare for class.
• A close Irish friend, Bill Slattery, and his wife, a nurse named Jail, would continue discussions at their home.
• Even in high school, Lewis worked at a Jewish private club during the summer, observing how the wealthy acted and recognized value
• As a busboy, he learned to discern who recognized value, which influenced his aspirations.
• 15 years old, he sought to become the wealthiest person in the world

Code-Switching and Mentorship

• Lewis code-switched, adapting his language to fit different social situations.
• He observed and learned from friends, who knew how "to act as if they were born with a silver spoon".
• Mentors, including white friends from Harvard, influenced how deal with others.
• Friendships in a diverse study group created the belief that "we are all the same" and "we want the same things".

Career and Early Legal Practice

• Graduates from Harvard Law School often joined Legal Services
• After Harvard, he joined Paul Weiss, a top corporate law firm in New York.
• There, he insisted on being addressed as "Mr. Lewis" to command the same respect as his white colleagues.
• One subject that he excelled at was mergers and acquisitions.
• Gained A+ grade in thesis for topic, and the first line was "In order to be wealthy, you must do mergers and acquisitions"
• The thought was also to not start a company as 90 percent fail, so better to buy a company."
• He had a successful and trappings of a middle class lifestyle but wanted to have a business where the "sky is the limit"
• There was always "the trial to buy a company"

Meeting Floyda and Personal Life

• Met his future wife, Floyda, on a blind date set up by her sister and a classmate, Ray Glover.
• Floyda, who was a law student from the Philippines, working as an administrative assistant at the Civil Rights Research Council found her way around to work on a tourist visa.
• Her father taught her he raised his children to treat everyone equally.
• On their first date, Lewis told Floyda, so that he would not only be known as a black man.
• "I'm international", he had told her.

Early Business Ventures

• the first company he wanted was "Park Sausages" for 3 million but lost out as the business was sold to someone else
• Continued searching for companies to acquire while practicing law, with registrations being sold before he could secure financing.
• Finally succeeded in buying a furniture company in Los Angeles around 1978 after 18 months of negotiations with a 66-year-old owner and his partner.
• Secured $8 million in financing for the furniture business acquisition.
• 18 months was spent, sending flowers etc ensuring smooth deal.
• Wanted to buy it 1973-1974.

Early Career and Vision

• Reginald Lewis married in 1969.
• He left Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison to start his own law firm in 1969.
• From approximately 1972, Lewis operated his own law firm while seeking companies to acquire.
• He didn't succeed in buying a company until 1978.
• Lewis persevered for about six years despite unsuccessful attempts to buy companies, driven by his vision to own a company.
• His motivation included a desire to prove that he could achieve what others (specifically white individuals) could.

Preparation and Key Relationships

• Lewis understood the importance of preparation, leveraging his success as a lawyer.
• He opened a business account with JP Morgan, recognizing the need for financing to buy a business.
• During this time, he continued to practice law successfully, while focusing on his goal of acquiring a company to create wealth.
• Lewis built key relationships, such as those at JP Morgan, to facilitate raising capital.
• He actively expanded his network, hustling and giving out his card to everyone.

First Attempted Acquisition

• Lewis found a furniture company with good margins and cash flow to buy.
• The deal involved $8 million from the bank.
• He experienced a setback when the manager of the furniture company started exhibiting racist behavior at the closing table
• The seller made false accusations, leading to the deal falling apart.
• The failed deal caused Lewis to have a near nervous breakdown.
• Lewis's lawyer wrote a letter to the owner of the company for defamation.
• The bank, Chase Manhattan, withdrew from the deal.

Recovery and Introspection

• Lewis and his family went to their summer house in the Hamptons to recover after the failed deal.
• He spent time looking at homes, eventually buying one.
• The change of scenery in the Hamptons was important for Lewis's mental health.
• He reflected on his three failed deals, realizing he was doing something wrong.
• Lewis began reading prospectuses of companies being bought and sold to understand the process.
• As he was teaching his daughter how to ride a bike, he realized he was trying to do everything himself instead of engaging outside expert help.

Strategy Shift

• Lewis recognized the need for external expertise, understanding that successful buyouts involve their own lawyers, accountants, and investment advisors.
• He understood all parties should be invested in the deal because if the deal doesn't go through they don't get paid.
• He decided to build a team, rather than acting as his own lawyer, investment banker, and accountant.
• At this point, in roughly 1984, Lewis was 42 years old.

McCall Pattern Company Acquisition

• Macon Pattern Company, part of Beatrice deals, was being sold to pay down debt from a larger acquisition.
• The deal was valued at $22 million, requiring Lewis to put up $1 million.
• Lewis's relationship with JP Morgan, started in 1972, proved crucial.
• His best friend advised him to go to JP Morgan for financing.
• JP Morgan lent him $500,000 without collateral.
• The other $500,000 came from A.A. A mess, an African-American minority investment company created by President Nixon, he was a lawyer for.
• Echo, or equitable insurance, lent him the money at 13% interest.
• With $1 million in cash, he then got the rest from bursters, so he acquired McCall Pattern Company in 1984 at age 42.