Template:Similar names
Joe Coulombe | |
|---|---|
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Joseph Hardin Coulombe June 3, 1930 San Diego, California, U.S. |
| Died |
February 28, 2020 (aged 89) Pasadena, California, U.S. |
| Spouse | Alice Steere Coulombe |
| Children | 3 |
| Occupation | Entrepreneur |
Joseph Hardin Coulombe (June 3, 1930 – February 28, 2020)[1] was an American entrepreneur. He founded the grocery store chain Trader Joe's in 1967 and ran it until his retirement in 1988.[2]
Early life and education[]
Coulombe was born in San Diego, California, and grew up on an avocado farm in nearby Del Mar.[3][4] After serving a year in the U.S. Air Force, he attended Stanford University, where he earned a bachelor's degree in economics in 1952 and a Master of Business Administration degree in 1954.[4][5] Coulombe was a member of Alpha Kappa Lambda.[6]
Career[]
Coulombe started his career at Rexall, a chain of American drugstores. In 1958, he was asked to test the launch of Pronto Markets, a store brand to compete against 7-Eleven. After running six Pronto Markets in the Los Angeles area, Rexall asked Coulombe to liquidate them; he decided to buy them out instead.[2] In 1967, Coulombe changed the name Pronto Markets to Trader Joe's. He led the chain to success and sold it in 1979 to German billionaire Theo Albrecht, co-founder of the Aldi supermarket chain.[2][7] Coulombe continued with Trader Joe's as chief executive officer until retiring in 1988.[2]
Coulombe served on the corporate boards of Cost Plus World Market, Bristol Farms, True Religion, and Imperial Bank.[4][8]
Personal life and death[]
In 1952, Coulombe married Alice Steere, whom he met at a party while they were students at Stanford. Alice served on the board and is a life trustee of the Los Angeles Opera.[9][10] They had three children, Joe, Charlotte, and Madeleine. Coulombe and his family lived in Pasadena, California.[4]
Coulombe was a board member of the Huntington Library,[11] the Colburn School, and the Los Angeles Opera.[4]
On February 28, 2020, Coulombe died at his home in Pasadena. He was 89 years old.[1][4][12]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 McLellan, Dennis (February 29, 2020). "Joe Coulombe, founder of Trader Joe's, dies at 89". https://www.latimes.com/obituaries/story/2020-02-29/la-me-joe-coulombe-trade-joes-dead.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 He Brought Trader Joe's to Main Street Archived August 5, 2010, at the Wayback Machine. February 2006
- ↑ Rogers, John (March 1, 2020). "Joe Coulombe, founder of Trader Joe's grocery chain, dies at 89". https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/joe-coulombe-founder-of-trader-joes-grocery-chain-dies-at-89/2020/02/29/3e9a02b2-5b08-11ea-9000-f3cffee23036_story.html. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 Smith, Kevin (February 29, 2020). "Trader Joe's Founder Joe Coulombe dies at age 89". https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2020/02/29/trader-joes-founder-joe-coulombe-dies-at-age-89/. Retrieved February 29, 2020.
- ↑ "Trader Joe's founder Joe Coulumbe dies at 89". KTLA. February 28, 2020. https://ktla.com/news/trader-joes-founder-joe-coulumbe-dies-at-89/. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
- ↑ "Alpha Kappa Lambda and Its Connection to Trader Joe's". https://www.franbecque.com/alpha-kappa-lambda-and-its-connection-to-trader-joes/. Retrieved February 29, 2020.
- ↑ Kowitt, Beth (August 23, 2010). "Inside the secret world of Trader Joe's". Fortune Magazine. Archived from the original on May 31, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140531194907/http://money.cnn.com/2010/08/20/news/companies/inside_trader_joes_full_version.fortune/index.htm.
- ↑ Kowitt, Beth (August 23, 2010). "Meet the original Joe". Fortune Magazine. http://features.blogs.fortune.cnn.com/2010/08/23/meet-the-original-joe/. Retrieved August 27, 2010.
- ↑ Haithman, Diane (2006-10-08). "Holding onto a high note". Los Angeles Times. http://articles.latimes.com/2006/oct/08/entertainment/ca-opera8.
- ↑ "Our Board". https://www.laopera.org/about-us/our-board/. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
- ↑ "Trustees and Governors". https://www.huntington.org/trustees-governors.
- ↑ "Trader Joe's founder dies at age 89". February 29, 2020. https://www.ajc.com/news/trader-joe-founder-dies-age/DjOEUBvqLtJaI50ThpDn7N/.
External links[]
- Rich, Alan (October 6, 2005). "The Tastemaker". https://www.laweekly.com/the-tastemaker.
The original article can be found at Joe Coulombe and the edit history here.