How Samsung Became the World's No. 1 Smartphone Maker

How Samsung became the world’s No. 1 smartphone maker—and its plans to stay on top

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By Sam Grobart

March 29, 2013 at 1:56 AM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

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This article is part of the April 1, 2013 issue of businessweek.

How Samsung Became the World's No. 1 Smartphone Maker — Illustration by Thomas Traum

I’m in a black Mercedes-Benz van with three Samsung Electronics PR people heading toward Yongin, a city about 45 minutes south of Seoul. Yongin is South Korea’s Orlando: a nondescript, fast-growing city known for its tourist attractions, especially Everland Resort, the country’s largest theme park. But the van isn’t going to Everland. We’re headed to a far more profitable theme park: the Samsung Human Resources Development Center, where the theme just happens to be Samsung.