Bob Kahn died earlier this summer. So who was Bob, and why is it worth noting here? Well, Sam Walton's widow once told me that Sam had said that Bob was the "greatest retail strategist" he had ever met. So great, that Sam twice extended the mandatory retirement limit so Bob could continue on the Wal*Mart Board of Directors. Also, Merv Morris, the founder of Mervyn's, paid a special tribute to Bob's contribution in his own autobiography.
Bob was born into a retailing family. His great grandfather, Israel, operated a store in New York City prior to the Civil War and moved to Oakland in 1870. Here Bob's grandfather, Solomon, with his two brothers made Kahn Brothers into the city's leading dry goods store. Only the ill health of Bob's father, Irving, which forced him to sell the store, prevented Bob from running the family business and not leaving his mark on the American retailing scene.
After graduating from Stanford and Harvard, Bob joined Macy's research division--its famous Research Division 5. Remember, back then all the other retailers were divided into only four divisions: merchandising, promotion, operations, and control. Bob was once called the most "normal" person in the division. Later, Bob would claim that in this case, "normal" was a polite term for "dumbest." After serving in the Army Air Corps/Air Force during both WWII and Korea, Bob worked as a controller for a West Coast retailer. In 1965 he opened his consulting business and since 1965 has published a monthly newsletter, RETAILING TODAY.
However, Bob was more than a consultant and retailing strategist. He was also a retail historian. Bob was always calling me to inform me of the latest rare retailing-oriented book he had just acquired, which for Bob also meant read. Book collectors across the country were always on the lookout for him. While discussing ideas for the latest edition of my RETAILING textbook, Bob volunteered to serve as a reviewer. It was here that I found Bob's true interest in retailing history. When doing the chapter on store layout, Bob provided me with not only a photo and diagram of the only store layout ever granted a patent, but a copy of the patent itself. Last year, I spent a full day taping Bob's responses to a series of questions on the historical development of retailing that Stan Hollander provided. Earlier this year he called to say that he had evidence that Marshall Field was not the first to use a one-price policy and would send it to me so that I could use it in my next edition.
These are just a few of the reasons why Bob Kahn will be missed.
David Ogilvy, of Ogilvy, Benson and Mather died July 21, 1999. Ogilvy, one of advertising's most creative minds, was responsible for the Hathaway "Man in the Eye-Patch" and Rolls Royce "At 60 MPH--The Electric Clock is the Noisiest Part of this Car" campaign among many others.
Retrospectives in Marketing
Dept. of Marketing & Supply Chain Management
N370 North Business Complex
Eli Broad Graduate School of Management
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI 48824-1122 |
Frozen North Correspondent – D.G. Brian Jones,
University of Prince Edward Island |
Pacific Rim Correspondent – Terry Witkowski,
California State University at Long Beach
|
Editor
Stanley Hollander, Michigan State University |
Texas Ranger Correspondent – Roger Dickinson,
University of Texas at Arlington |
Production Manager
Renee Dixon, Michigan State University |
Published biannually by Michigan State University |