I remember this story but I can't remember the specifics and my queries to google have maximum SEO keywords. So if someone remembers and can fill in my blanks please and thank you.
There was this CEO who was brought onto a failing US retail company. His big idea to save the company was to foster internal competition. His logic was if the free market was the most efficient way to structure a society then doing that internally in a company would make it more efficient. The company cratered for entirely predictable reasons.
Who was the CEO who was the company? Am I completely making this up?
I'm thin on details, but I believe the con all along was transfer the holdings of sears to a private entity controlled by whoever was doing the husking, and then collapse sears such that it's assets would all be reaped and held by the private entity. Basically moving all the assets of the public corporation into the private holding of the person running the public corporation into the ground.
From a certain point of view, its brilliant.
Enlightened self interest works, if the goal is to destroy everything so one or two assholes loot the remains.
This was the case for sure with Toys R Us. Vulture capital firm bought it and stood to profit from it's demise way more than it's success, stripped it for parts and then had media stories published about how no one wants to but toys irl anymore and how they were getting undercut by online sales.