Home Depot Co-Founder Bernie Marcus Dies At 95 | EUROtoday

NEW YORK (AP) — Bernard “Bernie” Marcus, the co-founder of The Home Depot, the world’s largest residence enchancment chain, a billionaire philanthropist, and an enormous Republican donor, has died. He was 95.

Marcus died Monday in Boca Raton, Florida, surrounded by household, in line with a Home Depot spokesperson.

Marcus was Home Depot’s CEO because it grew quickly throughout its first twenty years, and was chairman of the board till his retirement in 2002. In latest years, he grew to become an outspoken supporter of former president Donald Trump.

“We owe an immeasurable debt of gratitude to Bernie,” the corporate mentioned in an announcement. “He was a master merchant and a retail visionary. But even more importantly, he valued our associates, customers and communities above all. He’s left us with an invaluable legacy and the backbone of our company: our values and culture. ”

The son of Russian Jewish immigrants, Marcus was born in 1929 and grew up in a tenement in Newark, New Jersey, in line with a biography on the corporate’s web site. Marcus had aspirations of turning into a physician, however his household couldn’t afford medical college and he endeavored to turn into a pharmacist, receiving a level from Rutgers University. Marcus used to say he’d skip courses to promote Amana freezers door-to-door, in line with Home Depot.

After faculty, Marcus labored on the manufacturing conglomerate O’Dell’s and the retail chain Vornado, rapidly ascending the company ladder. By 1972, Marcus was chairman and president of Handy Dan Improvement Centers, a part of the Daylin conglomerate. It was there that Marcus fashioned a lifelong friendship with Arthur Blank.

The huge second in his profession arrived after he was fired by Handy Dan in 1978, together with Blank. Marcus had dreamt of a one-stop store for do-it-yourselfers. At age 49, Marcus, together with Blank, based Home Depot. Investment banker Ken Langone helped to safe financing to get The Home Depot began, in line with the corporate.

The first Home Depot opened in Atlanta the next 12 months and by 1981, the corporate went public and started promoting inventory. There are actually greater than 2,000 Home Depot shops and the corporate employs greater than 500,000 individuals. In the previous decade annual gross sales at Home Depot have doubled, reaching practically $153 billion in 2023

Marcus has financially supported varied charities in addition to Jewish and medical organizations via donations. He additionally constructed the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta, one of many largest on this planet. The firm mentioned that his philanthropic work will proceed via The Marcus Foundation, with a deal with Jewish causes, kids, medical analysis, free enterprise and the neighborhood.

Marcus was a vocal and monetary supporter of Donald Trump, donating practically $5 million to the Republican Party between 2016 and 2020, in line with OpenSecrets, a company that tracks political spending. Last 12 months, Marcus penned an op-ed for the suitable wing website Real Clear Politics, a clearinghouse of elections information and evaluation, that spelled out the explanations he was endorsing Trump for a second time period.