Lee Kun-hee, who sculpted South Korean company 'Samsung' into the country's largest 'chaebol' (or Korean for large conglomerate), died at 78.

Under Lee's leadership, Samsung Electronics became one of the world's biggest tech firms, with overall turnover equivalent to a fifth of South Korea's GDP.

Samsung said Lee died on Sunday with family by his side, but did not state the exact cause of death. A heart attack in 2014 had left him living in care. The firm stated, "All of us at Samsung will cherish his memory and are grateful for the journey we shared with him."

Here's Lee's journey.

Initial years

Lee was born on January 10, 1942, to Lee Byung-chul, the founder of the Samsung group. For his higher studies, Lee chose to study Economics from Waseda University in Japan. Later, Lee earned his Master's degree in Business Administration from George Washington University, Washington, D.C.

At the age of 26, Lee joined his father's company Samsung, which at the time was involved in electronics, machinery, chemicals, and financial services.

Two weeks after his father's death in 1987, Lee took over as the chairman of Samsung. He is said to have served as a quiet understudy of his father.

Lee as Samsung's chairman:

When Lee took over Samsung was considered as a producer of cheap, low-quality products. It was only under his leadership that radical reforms were introduced in the company.

In June 1993, Lee became famous for his call to employees asking for a change the company was run, telling them "change everything except your wife and kids." In fact, the firm then went on to burn its stock consisting of 150,000 defective handsets.

He claimed that the shortcomings of Samsung are because of the basic weaknesses in Korean society, which is the authoritarian style of leadership. Lee brought about a new management concept that insisted on juniors pouting out errors even as the company began its drive to stress on quality.

By the time Kun-hee stepped down, he was regarded as the South Korea's richest man, after having grown Samsung's revenues 39 times.

In 2014, Lee along with his son Lee Jae-yong, was named as the world's 35th most powerful person and the most powerful Korean in the Forbes Magazine's List of The World's Most Powerful People.

Personal life

Lee rarely ventured out from the high walls of his private compound in central Seoul to visit the company headquarters, earning him the nickname the “Hermit King”. Lee even avoided the media and led a reclusive life.

The business magnate, however, is said to have been an active sportsman, who spent his spare time riding horses and racing sports cars on a private track. Lee was also the President of the Korean Amateur Wrestling Association and was reportedly involved with a professional baseball team and amateur athletics.

Controversies surrounding Lee

Samsung became the largest of South's Korea's chaebols that dominate the country's economy. But the company has been accused of murky political and business dealings.

Lee himself was convicted twice of criminal offences, including the bribing of former President Roh Tae-woo.

In 2008, he stepped down as Samsung's chairman after he was charged with tax evasion and embezzlement. He was handed a three-year suspended jail sentence for tax evasion but was given a presidential pardon in 2009 and went on to lead South Korea's successful bid to host the 2018 Winter Olympics.

Lee did return as the Chairman of Samsung Group in 2010. But in 2014, he suffered a heart attack and retreated from the company's operations.

- With agency inputs.

First Published:Oct 26, 2020 3:39 PM IST