Christian Jagodzinski

Christian Jagodzinski is a German multimillionaire Internet entrepreneur and real estate investor. He has developed and turned around many businesses, most notably Telebuch.de, the first online book retailer.

Career

Jagodzinski started his entrepreneurial career at the age of 16 in Hamburg, Germany, where he set up his own computer company writing software. In the process of managing several dot.com business in the 1990s, he attended the University of Munich, where he received his MBA..^[1]. Jagodzinski became am online pioneer at 21 years old with the launch of the first e-commerce company ^[2]. He is the original founder of the first German Internet book retailer Telebooks (Telebuch) ^[3] which he and his partner Michael Gleissner sold to Amazon.com along with its subsidiaries in 1998 for an undisclosed amount ^[4] ^[5]. Jagodzinski took on a director of European business development position for Amazon for some time before selling his shares of the company estimated at $55 million ^[6]. Jagodzinski’s other successful Internet venture was WWW–service.com, which became the leading web hosting provider in Germany and Spain. In October of 1998, the company sold to Verio (Nasdaq: VRIO), which in turn was acquired by NTT (Nippon Telecom) in a multi-billion dollar deal in 1999 ^[7]

Real Estate and Hospitality

His financial success in the dot.com business allowed Jagodzinski to retire at the age of 29^[8]. In 2000, he relocated to Miami Beach, where he is a current investor in the luxury real estate and hospitality sector. ^[9] He is presently the Chairman and CEO of Desdemona Capital, a real estate and private equity investment company, which has a portfolio of companies including Nikki Beach St. Tropez and Appraisal Hub ^[10]

He is also the founder and president of Villazzo^[3], a high-end villa rental business concept founded on Jagodzinski’s own idea of an “ultimate vacation,” focused on luxury and privacy. The company offers services and amenities of a five-star hotel at exclusive villas in St. Tropez, Aspen and Miami Beach. ^[4] ^[11]

Media

In 2007, the Discovery Channel dedicated an episode of the international TV series “Europe’s Richest People,” to Jagodzinski's lifestyle, successful career, and present ventures^[8]

References

^ Masters, Judith. (May-June 2005) European CEO Magazine, The Florida Section, p.123
^ Mehta, Stephanie N. (8 June 2006). "Hollywood, South Pacific-style". CNN Money. Retrieved 9 March 2011
^ ^a ^b Kallergis, Katherine. (May 01, 2015) “Ex-Amazon exec, entrepreneur lists Miami Beach estate for $39m.” The Real Deal – South Florida Real Estate. http://therealdeal.com/miami/blog/2015/05/01/ex-amazon-exec-lists-miami-beach-estate-for-39m/
^ ^a ^b Cassidy Flanagan (21 May 2007). "The Joy of Renting a Super-Expensive Villa". Business Week. http://www.bloomberg.com/bw/stories/2007-05-21/the-joy-of-renting-a-super-expensive-villabusinessweek-business-news-stock-market-and-financial-advice
^ "Amazon übernimmt ABC-Bücherdienst (German)". Golem. 29 April 1998. Retrieved 4 March 2011
^ Stabley, Susan. (Jan 27, 2005) “Opulence for Rent.” South Florida Business Journal.
^ Faber, J.P. (October 2005) “Home Away from Home.” Miami Monthly Magazine, p. 86
^ ^a ^b Discovery Channel, 2007, "Europe"s Richest People - Christian Jagodzinski" http://desdemonacapital.com/press.html
^ Hijek, Barbara. Maine, John. Malernee, Jamie. (January 20, 2008) “The Billionaire next door.” The Sun Sentinel. http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2008-01-20/news/0801200003_1_middle-class-ross-gap
^ Conde Nast Traveler magazine. (June 2006) “Pool Your Resources.” p. 42
^ Clemence, Sara. (February 13, 2006) “Clicks to Bricks.” http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2006/0213/054a.html

Career

Real Estate and Hospitality

Media

References

Further Reading