Herb Kelleher was born in 1931 in New Jersey. His father died when he was a boy, and he spent countless late nights talking with his mother, who taught him to treat every person with respect regardless of their title or position. That lesson became the foundation of everything he later built. Kelleher studied law and moved to San Antonio, Texas, to practice.
In 1966, one of his clients, Rollin King, came to him with an idea for a low-cost airline flying between Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio. According to legend, they sketched the plan on a cocktail napkin. Kelleher agreed to help, but the established airlines fought them in court for years to keep them grounded. Kelleher argued the case himself all the way to the Texas Supreme Court and won. In 1971, Southwest Airlines finally took off.
Survival was still a battle. Short on money, Southwest had to sell one of its four planes. To keep its full schedule with only three, employees learned to unload and reload a plane in about ten minutes. That quick turnaround became a core part of the airline’s success. Southwest flew one type of plane, kept fares low, and made flying fun. Kelleher famously put employees first, believing happy employees would take care of customers, and customers would take care of shareholders.
His playful personality became legendary. He once settled a slogan dispute with another company by arm wrestling its CEO. Under his leadership, Southwest grew into one of America’s largest airlines and stayed profitable year after year, even when the rest of the industry struggled. Kelleher died in 2019 at age 87.
Herb Kelleher’s story is covered in Deeply Driven Episode #14.
Source Book
NUTS!: Southwest Airlines’ Crazy Recipe for Business and Personal Success
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