Konosuke Matsushita (1894-1989) started with nothing but an idea for an electric plug, and created a vast business empire that spread around the world. As the owner of Panasonic Corporation and other profitable business ventures, he amassed a personal fortune valued at more than three billion dollars.

Since his name has never been prominently displayed, Konosuke Matsushita is not as well known as Sam Walton or Henry Ford or Honda or any of the other business giants who used their names on their products. But his company, Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. Ltd., generated more revenue during his lifetime than any of the others. Although he was generally unknown outside his native land of Japan, his company's sales eventually exceeded sixty three billion dollars every year.

Humble Beginnings

Matsushita was born into humble circumstances in the Japanese village of Wasa, on November 27, 1894. He grew into a nervous, rather sickly...