Mark Bezos Worked His Way to the Top, Like Brother Jeff Bezos

There’s very little chance that anyone reading this doesn’t know the name Jeff Bezos. After all, he founded the Amazon e-commerce empire that eMarketer estimates will provide 40 percent of Americans’ online shopping this year worth $367.19 billion.

However, there's a younger Bezos brother that people might be less familiar with. Mark Bezos is the brother of the world’s richest man, but he has forged a successful and lucrative career on his own.

Mark Bezos spent his early working years at various advertising firms and then went on to co-found his own agency, Bezos-Nathanson. According to his LinkedIn profile, Bezos-Nathanson developed campaigns for companies including Dom Perignon and Ramada Hotels. The frim sold in 2006.

Bezos worked in marketing for Robin Hood Foundation from 2006–2016 and now runs HighPost Capital, a private equity firm owned by the Bezos family. He also has served as a volunteer firefighter and is a director at the Bezos Family Foundation.

The younger Bezos spent about a decade working for the Robin Hood Foundation (not to be confused with online brokerage Robinhood). Robin Hood Foundation partners with over 250 non-profit organizations and its stated mission is “to elevate New Yorkers out of poverty.” Mark Bezos joined Robin Hood Foundation after selling his advertising agency.

According to financial records, Bezos earned a six-figure salary during his time at Robin Hood. Reports say that he made about $140,000 per year in 2013 and 2014, then $240,000 in 2015–2016.

It’s hard to nail down the younger Bezos’s net worth, although he likely pulled in over $1 million in his tenure with Robin Hood. Crunchbase information shows that he invested $10 million in NBTV in April 2021.

In spring of 2020, Mark Bezos reportedly sold his Scarsdale, N.Y. home for $11 million. The property boasted 10,000 square feet of main living space and a 3,500 square foot guest house.

Recently, Jeff Bezos announced on Instagram that he and his brother Mark will be heading into space. His aerospace company, Blue Origin, also announced the upcoming flight on July 20. It will be the maiden human flight of the New Shepard suborbital rocket system.

An auction will determine the winner of an additional seat aboard New Shepard with the Bezos brothers. The chance to go briefly into space with the famous brothers won't be cheap. The top bid as of early on June 7 was already $2.8 million after nearly 6,000 bidders chimed in from 143 countries.

Blue Origin stated that the unsealed online bidding will go until June 10, and on June 12, a live online auction will conclude the proceedings. The auction money is going to Club for the Future, Blue Origin's foundation meant to “inspire future generations to pursue careers in STEM”.

Jeff Bezos referred in his Instagram post to being able to have "the greatest adventure, with my best friend." The flight of the brothers and the auction winner is set to occur on the 52nd anniversary of the Apollo moon landing.