Home Depot

Acquired tells the story of Home Depot, the highest-returning stock in U.S. market history from its 1981 IPO to the present. Fired from the Handy Dan hardware chain in their 40s, Bernie Marcus and Arthur Blank launched a warehouse-format home improvement store built on a radically decentralized operating system that empowered store managers as entrepreneurs. The episode traces the company's journey through its IPO, the Bob Nardelli-era centralization crisis that nearly destroyed the culture, and CEO Frank Blake's successful turnaround that restored the founding principles and set up Home Depot's modern dominance with both DIY and professional customers.