biography
| name: |
Kresge, S(ebastian) S(pering)
|
pronunciation:
[krezgee]
| sex:
| male
|
| lived:
| (1867–1966)
|
| biography:
| Merchant and philanthropist, born in Bald Mount, Pennsylvania, USA. After business school he worked as a book-keeper and a tinware salesman (1890–7), then he bought into J G McCrory's chain stores, opening stores in Memphis and Detroit. In 1899 he bought out the Detroit store to begin the S S Kresge Co, which sold nothing over ten cents, and by the mid-1920s had over 300 stores. In the 1920s he expanded into real estate, and founded the National Vigilance Committee for Prohibition Enforcement and the Kresge Foundation (1924), a philanthropic organization that he endowed with the bulk of his fortune. As chairman of the board after 1925, he continued to play an active role in his company, contributing to the establishment of the K-Mart discount stores (1961) and the Jupiter stores (1963). |
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