Who Is Jeff Morris Jr's Favorite Businessman?

Jeff Morris Jr names his grandfather, Mervin Morris, as his favorite businessman. Mervin Morris was a retailer who started Mervin's and built it into a public company.

Mervin Morris grew up in Delano, California, where his family owned the town's one general store. He served in the Army and was never deployed. In Arkansas they put him in charge of the base store because he was good at retailing. After that posting he expected people coming home from the war to need clothes for themselves and their families. His family was dirt poor, and he took out loans to open a single store. The idea was an affordable, family-first retailer in California, a place where kids and adults in one family could shop together. Older department stores mostly served men or women, and the prices sat out of reach for families without much money to spend on clothes. The closest comparison today is Target or Kohl's.

Mervin Morris lived toward 101. Years spent close to him became lessons in business and in the people who worked for him.