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How Did Ken Langone Co-found Home Depot?

Ben Gilbert says Ken Langone became a co-founder of Home Depot by accidentally getting Bernie Marcus and Arthur Blank fired after buying Handy Dan shares.

Ken bought every publicly traded share of Handy Dan except one block. Built From Scratch, the Home Depot book by Bernie and Arthur, describes a block of 50,000 shares, about 2% of the company, owned by the Brooklyn-based Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer. Ken called the church financial officer, a priest, and asked him to sell. The priest asked if Langone was an Italian name and if Ken was Catholic. Ken said yes. Under the pain of hell, the priest asked what he should do. Ken laughed and told him to keep the shares. Ken started buying at $3 a share and finished with almost 20% of the company. The last shares he bought were around $9, with no float and no trading left, so the price stayed locked. Two shareholders plus the church still held the business.

The buying led to Bernie and Arthur getting fired and then founding Home Depot. Ken Langone became a co-founder because he got his buddies fired by accident, though the firing was in no way his fault.

Grokipedia·Ken Langone·Home Depot

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The Home Depot ·

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