San Francisco, Nov 28 (IANS): Tony Hsieh, the former CEO of Las Vegas-based online shoe retailer Zappos, died at the age of 46, sending shock waves in the middle of the Thanksgiving holiday weekend.

Hsieh passed away on Friday surrounded by his family, said Megan Fazio, a spokesperson for Las Vegas-based enterprise DTP Companies, which Hsieh had founded.

Citing a spokesperson for Hsieh, TechCrunch on Saturday reported that the cause of his death was that he had sustained injuries in a house fire.

However, the report added that the actual cause of Hsieh's death was still under investigation.

Widely regarded as a visionary, Hsieh invested $500,000 in Zappos in 1999 which was considered as a bad idea by many.

Hsieh's leadership is credited for the company's turnaround and Amazon had bought it in 2009 at a valuation of nearly $1.2 billion.

He continued to lead Zappos until stepping down as CEO of the company earlier this year.

His role as a visionary came more into focus due to his role in DTP Companies which ran the Downtown Project, an initiative to revitalise the Las Vegas area.

"Tony's kindness and generosity touched the lives of everyone around him and forever brightened the world. Delivering happiness was always his mantra so instead of mourning his transition, we ask you to join us in celebrating his life," said a statement from the DTP.