In brief
Arthur M. Blank (born 1942) is an American billionaire businessman and philanthropist best known as the co-founder of The Home Depot, the world's largest home improvement retailer, and as the owner of the NFL's Atlanta Falcons and Major League Soccer's Atlanta United FC.
Born in Queens, New York City, to Jewish parents Molly and Max Blank, he earned a B.S. in business administration from Babson College in 1963. After early work in his family's pharmaceutical distribution business and roles at companies like Daylin and Handy Dan Hardware, Blank co-founded The Home Depot in 1978 with Bernie Marcus following their dismissal from Handy Dan; the first two stores opened in Atlanta in 1979, pioneering the warehouse-style retail model for home improvement. By the time Blank retired as co-chairman in 2001, the company had grown to over 1,300 stores worldwide with annual sales of $53.5 billion (fiscal 2001).
Blank's brother Michael pursued studies in pharmaceutical science at the University of Michigan, with initial plans for the siblings to eventually run the family business together. The family's Jewish heritage and working-class roots shaped Blank's early worldview, emphasizing hard work and community ties amid the challenges of urban life in post-World War II Queens.
Photographs
Hero photograph: Wikimedia Commons
