THE THEME WAS NARNIA meets Walden meets 1920s speakeasy at the 2012 Summit Series Basecamp conference. The rapper Q-Tip and DJ Jazzy Jeff played a set; the president of Georgia made a speech; rescued mountain lions surprised guests at a nature talk; and the illusionist David Blaine roamed the halls of the Lake Tahoe resort, randomly delighting attendees with his tricks.
Just four years after a group of idealistic entrepreneurs in their early twenties started Summit Series, it had grown into a phenomenon: an invite-only multi-day conference with an eye-popping guest list of CEOs, founders, wellness gurus, philanthropists, and celebrities who came for the intense workshops, heady talks, and legendary parties at stunning vacation destinations. At an annual Summit Series conference or a "Summit at Sea" cruise, one might find oneself in a meditation session with Jeff Bezos, learning about indigenous peoples' rights from Harrison Ford, or petting puppies with A$AP Rocky.
The four young men who created Summit SeriesElliott Bisnow, Brett Leve, Jeff Rosenthal, and Jeremy Schwartz-would usually be in the mix, hobnobbing with guests in the craft cocktail bar hidden behind a broom closet or practicing lucid dreaming in the geodesic dome. But at Lake Tahoe in 2012 they had to sit out the fun, they recall in Make No Small Plans, a book about the conference series that they published last year. Instead they were holed up in a windowless room at the resort, working behind the scenes to charter a 737 jet to Utah.
The morning after the conference ended, they ushered 60 of the 800 Basecamp attendees onto the plane for a last-minute all-expenses-paid mystery trip. A fleet of 30 rental cars was waiting in Salt Lake City to deliver the still-baffled guests to a hastily constructed yurt at the top of a mountain in the town of Eden, Utah-Powder Mountain.
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
KKR'S $1 TRILLION GAMBLE
The co-CEOs of KKR have a radical strategy to supercharge growth - and chart a path far different from that of their mentors, Henry Kravis and George Roberts.
THE SHIPWRECKED LEGACY OF MIKE LYNCH
THE BRITISH TECH MOGUL SOLD HIS COMPANY FOR $11 BILLION, THEN SPENT YEARS FIGHTING FRAUD CHARGES. HIS SHOCKING DEATH HAS LEFT MANY UNANSWERED QUESTIONS ABOUT HIS LIFE.
FORTUNE - CHANGE THE WORLD
THESE COMPANIES BUILD BUSINESSES AROUND SOLVING SOCIAL PROBLEMS AND THEY DO WELL BY DOING GOOD.
Can Cathy Engelbert Handle the Pressure?
The WNBA commissioner and ex-Deloitte CEO is leading the league through a season of historic highs, but critics wonder if her game plan is good enough to seize the moment.
Kamalanomics: Harris's Road Map for Business
Vice President Kamala Harris hasn't done much to woo Big Business. Many executives would still rather take their chances with her than the alternative.
Mary Barra
The CEO of General Motors accelerates into our top spot.
MPW - MOST POWERFUL WOMEN 2024
WHEN FORTUNE launched its Most Powerful Women list in 1998, women were just starting to trickle into the C-suite in significant numbers.
WHO HAS TIME FOR A POWER LUNCH? THE REAL BUSINESS HAPPENS AT 4 P.M. 'POWER HOUR.'
THE SUN is pouring in through the floor-to-ceiling windows when the bar begins to fill with bespoke suits on a Tuesday in August at Four Twenty Five. The new restaurant from Jean-Georges Vongerichten is on the first floor of a Midtown Manhattan skyscraper, beneath the offices of financial giant Citadel Securities. And the traders are thirsty.
HOW TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE FED'S BIG RATE CUT
THE WAIT IS OVER. After more than a year of will-they-or-won't-they, the Federal Reserve on Sept. 18 announced the first cut to its benchmark Federal funds rate since the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, a 50-basis-point drop that Chairman Jerome Powell signaled is likely the first of many.
FOR GEN Z AT WORK, THE GENERATION GAP IS A WELLNESS GAP. HERE'S HOW TO BRIDGE IT
FOR ONE nonprofit executive director, it was a 2022 New York City subway shooting that highlighted the stark differences between how he, a 55-year-old, and his Gen Z staffers show up to work.