Key Takeaways
- • Schwarzman, founder of Blackstone, grew up in Oxford Circle, a Jewish neighborhood in Philadelphia that he described as "a rough place," where his family ran a curtain and linen store for several generations.
- • His father worked seven days a week and ran the store with a "perfectionism not unlike the discipline" Schwarzman later applied to building Blackstone, according to the Blackstone and Nikkei Asia series.
- • At Yale, Schwarzman was reportedly failing after two English papers, until an English teacher tutored him. His grades rose to the top 10% of his class, and he gained the confidence to attempt entry to Skull and Bones.
- • The series, released by Blackstone in partnership with Nikkei Asia and reported by eFinancialCareers, is the source of these biographical details.
Summary
Stephen Schwarzman's early life, as described in a new series of articles released by Blackstone in partnership with Nikkei Asia and reported by eFinancialCareers, offers insight into the path of the co-founder and chief executive of one of the world's largest private equity firms. Schwarzman grew up in Oxford Circle, then a Jewish neighborhood in Philadelphia. His family ran a curtain and linen store there across several generations. He recalled that his father worked seven days a week and ran the business with a "perfectionism not unlike the discipline" he later brought to building Blackstone. Schwarzman described the neighborhood as "a rough place," and said the father of one of his friends had been killed by the mafia. The family later moved to an upper-middle-class suburb, which he characterized as "a different America."
His academic record was less assured. Schwarzman enrolled in Yale University's interdisciplinary "Human Culture and Behavior" program. His first English literature papers were weak, and he later failed a second. An English teacher took him aside and tutored him, teaching him "first how to write and then how to analyze." Schwarzman credited that intervention with changing the course of his life. His grades improved to the point where he ranked in the top 10% of his class, and he said it gave him the confidence to pursue membership in Yale's Skull and Bones society.
The headline of the eFinancialCareers piece also characterizes Schwarzman's first banking job as "bleak and depressing" and his MBA as "dull," framing his early career as a period of setbacks before his later success at Blackstone.
His academic record was less assured. Schwarzman enrolled in Yale University's interdisciplinary "Human Culture and Behavior" program. His first English literature papers were weak, and he later failed a second. An English teacher took him aside and tutored him, teaching him "first how to write and then how to analyze." Schwarzman credited that intervention with changing the course of his life. His grades improved to the point where he ranked in the top 10% of his class, and he said it gave him the confidence to pursue membership in Yale's Skull and Bones society.
The headline of the eFinancialCareers piece also characterizes Schwarzman's first banking job as "bleak and depressing" and his MBA as "dull," framing his early career as a period of setbacks before his later success at Blackstone.
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