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drive all competition out of business. The company countered that its market share was only in the 15% range and that its low cost strategy had resulted in a significant improvement in that nation's nutrition and standard of living. The court agreed with the government and fined each of the brothers $ 10,000. In 1949, the U.S. Court of
Appeals upheld the decision and the antitrust division asked the court to break up the company Thousands of letters poured into the Justice Department supporting the company and the Hartford brothers gave extensive interviews with
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resulted in A&P becoming the first chain of grocery stores. As the company expanded into the largest retailer, George focused on finance and basic management. He was the voice of caution balancing his more outgoing brother. After John died in 1951, George exercised sole control of the company. While A&P continued to report record sales and profits during the rest of his life, the company made mistakes that ultimately lead to the loss of its position in the 1970s as the leading supermarket operator.
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weeks. In 1907 or 1908, George
Hartford Sr. divided management responsibilities among his sons with George Jr. controlling finance and John directing sales and operations. The two ran the company as a team for over 40 years. In 1912, John proposed to create small economy stores to cut costs and increase volume by offering low prices. The concept was successful and by 1915 the chain operated over 1,600 stores. When George Sr. retired in 1916, George Jr. became Chairman in addition to Treasurer.
156:(1872–1951). Under the terms of their father's will, the two brothers had total control of the company's voting stock as long as either was alive. "Mr. George" as he was known to distinguish him from his father, "Mr. Hartford", was considered the "financial genius" at the firm who balanced his brother, "Mr. John" who was the firm's "merchandising power". They built the chain into the world's largest retailer with annual sales of $ 4.5 billion in 1957 when George died.
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ultimately A&P's became the first chain to operate grocery stores. By labeling the product under the company's name, George also started the trend of chain stores marketing products under their own private labels. Over the next decade, the company added other private labeled products such as condensed milk, spices, and butter. By the end of the century, the firm's sales reached $ 5 million from 198 stores as well as its mail order and wagon route operations.
241:. George and Josephine raised her daughter, Mabel and did not have additional children. He was a private individual who lived modestly despite his wealth. George never had a passport and did not travel except to vacation on the New Jersey shore. He rarely attended social events. His one passion was automobiles, which he took apart and reassembled to see how they worked. George also drove himself to his office.
209:(1832–1917) and Marie Josephine Ludlum (1837–1935). George Sr. was a bookkeeper for the recently formed Great American Tea Company, a retailer of tea and coffee in Manhattan that ultimately became the "Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company". Two years later, he was promoted to cashier and the family moved to
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John
Hartford died suddenly in 1951 and was replaced by the company's longtime secretary, Ralph Burger. Now in his 80s, George remained as A&P's chairman and treasurer. Burger was a strong staffer who lacked John Hartford's strategic marketing skills. A&P continued to report record sales but
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Because George was opposed to borrowing and John insisted on maintaining low costs and prices, A&P was in excellent position to weather the
Depression and reported even higher sales and profits. A&P's success strengthened the opposition of small independent grocers and their political allies.
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After World War I, A&P rapidly expanded and by 1925 operated 13,961 stores with sales of $ 400 million and profit of $ 10 million. John convinced George to decentralize management into regions but George insisted that headquarters retain control of finances, real estate and purchasing policy, the
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George and his brother John were deeply hurt when they were convicted in
Federal Court in 1945 for criminal violations of the antitrust laws. President Roosevelt's antitrust division charged that the combination of the company's manufacturing, distribution and retail operations, if unchecked, would
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Meanwhile the supermarket revolution was taking place in grocery retailing. A few operators experimented with large self-service supermarkets that proved successful. A&P held back until 1936 when the brothers agreed to try the concept. By 1938, the chain operated 1,100 of the larger stores. The
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Raised in Orange, New Jersey, George Jr. started his career at A&P after finishing high school. In the mid-1880s, he made an early mark on the firm by proposing that the company sell baking soda at the company's tea and coffee stores. This started a trend to add additional items that ultimately
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In 1901, George Gilman died and George Sr. negotiated a settlement with the estate that allowed him to control all of the voting stock and eventually repurchase the preferred shares from the Gilman heirs. The
Hartfords moved aggressively to expand the enterprise, opening a new store every three
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In the early 1880s, A&P only sold tea, coffee and sugar at their stores, and the concept of a chain grocery store had not yet emerged. Young George convinced his father to add baking powder to the product line, starting the company down the path to increase the number of items offered until
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retired and left the management of the 70 store chain to George
Hartford Sr., who now received half of the profits from the company. Hartford Sr. was also elected mayor of Orange, New Jersey, and served in that position until 1890. George Jr. finished school and started working for the company
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areas he personally managed. The company introduced larger "combination stores" including space for meats, produce and dairy as well as traditional grocery items and launched a new drive to reduce costs. By 1930 the company's 16,000 stores reached sales of $ 1 billion.
185:, where they lived with her daughter, Mabel. Despite his position as the company's chairman, he was largely unknown to the public and even in the company except among a small group of senior executives. "To immortalize outstanding American merchants",
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In 1957, George L. Hartford died at his home and was buried in
Montclair next to his wife. Because he was the last survivor of his siblings, his father's trust was dissolved. Most of his estate was left to the
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took the unusual step of publishing a long letter pointing out that the effect of Patman's legislation would be a significant increase of food prices. The tide of public opinion turned against the bill.
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chain continued to rebuild itself so that by 1950 A&P operated 4,000 supermarkets and 500 smaller combination stores. Sales reached $ 3.2 billion with an after tax profit of $ 32 million.
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which put them on the magazine's
November 13, 1950, cover. The case dragged on until the more business friendly Eisenhower administration that dropped its demands to break up the company.
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in an editorial on August 29, 2011, wrote "Together the brothers, neither of whom had finished high school, built what would be, for 40 years, the largest retail outlet in the world."
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His personal life was also conservative and George did not marry until he was in his 40s. His wife, Josephine Burnet Logan (1861-1944) was a widow and they moved to
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introduced legislation to place a significant federal tax on each chain store. If adopted, this legislation would have put A&P out of business. George and
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368:"George Hartford of A&P Dies at 92. Chairman of Giant Chain Was Considered Financial Genius Behind Expansion Started Mass Buying Lost Antitrust Action"
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in an editorial on
September 7, 2011, wrote that John and George Hartford "were among the 20th century’s most accomplished and visionary businessmen".
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George Ludlum Hartford, chairman of the Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company, died last night of uremia at his home, 3 Crestmont Road.
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193:, four times life size along with seven other men, which would come to be known as the Merchandise Mart Hall of Fame in Chicago.
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George Jr. lived with his parents until 1908 when he married a widow, Josephine Burnet Logan (1861 - 1944) and moved to
148:(A&P), serving in those positions for over 40 years from 1916 until his death. He was the successor to his father,
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in Newark, New Jersey. 1878 became a momentous year for the Hartford family when A&P's founder,
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made strategic mistakes that would ultimately cost the company its leadership position in 1974.
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213:. At age 13, George Jr. started working for A&P on evenings and weekends while attending
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magazine interviewed John and his brother George who were on their cover in November 1950.
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144:(November 7, 1864 – September 23, 1957) was the longtime chairman and treasurer of the
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The Great A&P and the struggle for small business in America, 2nd ed
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The Rise & Decline of the Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company
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521:"$ 25,000 Grant to LaneTech From The Richard H. Driehaus Foundation"
469:
The Rise & Decline of The Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company
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Chairman and treasurer of the Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company
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Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co. v. Supermarket Equipment Corp.
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The Great A&P and the Struggle for Small Business in America
152:(1832–1917) and led the company with his younger brother,
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Great Atlantic was one of the comparator companies in the book
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The Story of the Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company
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in 1953 commissioned a bronze bust of George's father
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876:Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company Warehouse
977:, Walsh, William I., 1986 Publisher Lyle Stuart
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1012:The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company
613:The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company
222:full-time as a cashier in a nearby store in
1042:American businesspeople convicted of crimes
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205:and was the second child and first son of
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1022:Businesspeople from Montclair, New Jersey
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1047:St. Benedict's Preparatory School alumni
629:Best Cellars/A&P Wine & Spirits
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971:, Hoyt, Edwin P., 1969, Hawthorn Books
146:Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company
85:Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company
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1027:American businesspeople in retailing
215:Saint Benedict's Preparatory School
75:Saint Benedict's Preparatory School
914:Pepsi 400 Presented by Farmer Jack
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673:Pantry Pride (Richmond, Virginia)
983:, 2nd ed. Levinson, Marc, 2019.
1037:People from Orange, New Jersey
871:A & P Food Stores Building
1:
399:"How a Grocer Bagged Profits"
1017:Businesspeople from Brooklyn
548:"Red Circle & Gold Leaf"
927:John A. Hartford Foundation
575:. November 13, 1950. Cover.
307:John A. Hartford Foundation
282:John A. Hartford Foundation
249:In 1935, Texas Congressman
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779:George Huntington Hartford
569:"George and John Hartford"
207:George Huntington Hartford
191:George Huntington Hartford
150:George Huntington Hartford
111:George Huntington Hartford
932:New Community Corporation
47:, New York City, New York
718:Warehouse Economy Outlet
969:That Wonderful A&P!
794:John Augustine Hartford
495:Anderson, Avis (2002).
467:Walsh, William (1986).
337:Levinson, Marc (2019).
165:The Wall Street Journal
154:John Augustine Hartford
123:John Augustine Hartford
784:George Ludlum Hartford
142:George Ludlum Hartford
114:Marie Josephine Ludlum
102:Josephine Burnet Logan
94:Chairman and treasurer
25:George Ludlum Hartford
938:Supermarket Superstar
713:Ultra Food & Drug
708:SuperPlus Food Stores
427:"The Great A & P"
239:Montclair, New Jersey
201:Hartford was born in
183:Montclair, New Jersey
64:Montclair, New Jersey
840:Eight O'Clock Coffee
819:Floyd James Thompson
556:, November 13, 1950.
376:. September 25, 1957
900:The A&P Gypsies
799:Christian W.E. Haub
789:Huntington Hartford
764:E. LeBron Fairbanks
529:. November 16, 2010
471:. Lyle Stuart Inc.
404:Wall Street Journal
133:Huntington Hartford
774:Edward V. Hartford
744:Richard F. Colburn
703:Super Fresh Canada
683:Kohl's Food Stores
668:Food Basics Canada
432:The New York Times
373:The New York Times
224:Newark, New Jersey
211:Orange, New Jersey
171:The New York Times
128:Edward V. Hartford
56:September 23, 1957
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866:A&P Warehouse
859:Former facilities
850:Red Circle Coffee
754:Michael J. Cullen
688:Miracle Food Mart
506:978-0-7385-1038-5
407:. August 29, 2011
348:978-0-578-56210-0
341:. Marc Levinson.
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1007:American grocers
944:Tengelmann Group
620:Inactive banners
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769:George Gilman
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478:0-8184-0382-9
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439:September 13,
435:. August 2011
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301:Good to Great
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255:John Hartford
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251:Wright Patman
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835:Bokar Coffee
814:Steve Peters
809:Produce Pete
783:
759:Jimmy Duncan
734:Evelyn Adams
698:Sav-A-Center
572:
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533:November 23,
531:. Retrieved
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437:. Retrieved
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409:. Retrieved
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378:. Retrieved
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58:(1957-09-23)
18:
1002:1957 deaths
997:1864 births
950:Woman's Day
845:Quaker Maid
804:Bill McEwan
749:Bill Corbus
678:Futurestore
663:Farmer Jack
658:Family Mart
633:Food Basics
499:. Arcadia.
991:Categories
638:Waldbaum's
313:References
81:Occupation
37:1864-11-07
526:Triblocal
130:(brother)
125:(brother)
119:Relatives
107:Parent(s)
71:Education
828:Products
653:Dominion
380:June 15,
288:See also
203:Brooklyn
135:(nephew)
45:Brooklyn
893:A&P
885:Related
727:People
648:A-Mart
503:
475:
345:
99:Spouse
91:Title
907:Bark
693:Plus
573:Time
553:Time
535:2010
501:ISBN
473:ISBN
441:2011
413:2011
382:2008
343:ISBN
269:Time
159:Time
53:Died
31:Born
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