Bernard Marcus
American entrepreneur (1929 - )
- || At The Bottom
1978 -- Bernie Marcus had just been fired by a man whose nickname was "Ming the Merciless."
The 50-year old son of Russian immigrants, Marcus had scratched his way through school and -- after working a few years as a pharmacist -- found that he liked the idea of running a store more than he enjoyed working in one. By the late 1970s, he had worked his way to the top of a Los Angeles-based discount hardware chain called Handy Dan, where he served as president and CEO. Handy Dan was doing well and earning excellent profits. Unfortunately for Marcus, Handy Dan was owned by a parent company, Daylin, whose top executive was rumored to be worried that Bernard Marcus might one day succeed him. So while Handy Dan was the only division of Daylin that was turning out impressive profits, "Ming the Merciless" reminded everyone of why he had earned the nickname in the first place. On a Friday afternoon, he fired the top three executives at Handy Dan. For good measure, he told the press that Marcus and the others had been guilty of labor law violations -- allegations that turned out to be without merit. Now at the age of 50, Bernie Marcus was unemployed and nearly broke.
- || At The Top
2002 -- On the day of his retirement as Chairman of Home Depot, Bernie Marcus presided over one of the top 20 public companies in the nation. With outlets in the United States, Canada, Mexico and China, Home Depot's sales reached $58 billion in 2001. More than 160,000 men and women were employed in more than two thousand "superstores" -- massive warehouse facilities that averaged 105,000 square feet each. In addition to founding and leading a successful home improvement retailer for over 20 years, Marcus and his business partners also changed the way that Americans approached home improvement projects. By offering a nearly unlimited selection of supplies and tools, as well as short, simple workshops in basic home improvement tasks, Home Depot made it possible for almost everyone to "do it yourself." Beyond his astounding business success, Bernie Marcus had also become one of the nation's top charitable donors. Among other causes, Marcus established an institute that provides services to children with developmental disabilities; established a think tank that focuses on issues of democracy in Israel; and provided almost all the funding for the Georgia Aquarium (which opened in 2005).
- || The Comeback
Shortly after his dismissal from Handy Dan, Bernard Marcus spoke with a friend, Ken Langone, who reminded him of an idea that Marcus had shared with him a few years earlier. At the time Marcus though that a national chain of warehouse-sized home improvement centers would be a good idea. But Marcus was content at the time and had no reason to explore his idea -- until he lost his job. Though Marcus was humiliated by the firing, Langone was optimistic. This is the greatest news I have heard," he told this friend. "You have just been kicked in the ass with a golden horseshoe." After finding a group of enthusiastic investors who liked his business plan, Marcus and his business partner Arthur Blank opened a handful of stores in Atlanta in 1979. The first few warehouses did not immediately make an impact, but within two years business began to tick upward. Within a decade, the company was clearing almost $3 billion a year in sales and employed almost 20,000 people. Known for its outstanding customer service, Home Depot also established itself as a company that treated its employees well. Marcus encouraged his managers and employees to think creatively and bring new ideas into the company. Home Depot's unique employee training programs give everyone in the company the background to help sell and service the products they sell. He also compensates his employees well, offering wages that exceed industry averages by 20-25 percent; generous health and dental benefits; and options to purchase discounted Home Depot Stock. As Marcus explains, he and his partners were in "the right place at the right time with the right philosophy. . . . We surrounded ourselves with good people and we believed in them."
