Zappos

Zappos represents the epigenetic model of cultural inheritance in acquisitions. When Amazon acquired Zappos for $1.2 billion in 2009, Tony Hsieh insisted on one condition: Zappos would maintain its unique culture - famous for extreme customer service, employee autonomy, and quirky values.

This arrangement exemplifies epigenetic inheritance: Zappos' DNA became part of Amazon's broader organizational genome, but the expression of that DNA remained distinct because Zappos maintained different regulatory conditions - different leadership, metrics, and cultural environment. Amazon preserved the conditions that allowed Zappos' DNA to express its unique phenotype.

However, the case also illustrates epigenetic limits. As Amazon's regulatory pressure increased over time, maintaining distinct culture became harder. The 2015 Holacracy adoption - partly as a buffer against Amazonian integration - shows how environmental changes alter gene expression even when DNA remains constant.