Bernard Marcus Net Worth & Biography

Bernard Marcus is an American retail entrepreneur, pharmacist, and philanthropist. He is best known in the business scene for being one of the devoted businessmen that founded Home Depot and led the company as the first Chief Executive Officer before servings as the Chairman of the Board at the company until his retirement in 2002. In this biography article, we are going to discuss the story of Mr. Bernie Marcus, a popular name among the world’s billionaire businessmen. Read on for all the details.

Early Life

The retail entrepreneur, Bernie Marcus, was born in New Jersey, United States, on the 12th of May 1929. Childhood for him was very tough as he grew up in a troubled family.

In 1947, Ben graduated from Southside High School. He couldn’t pursue his dreams of becoming a professional qualified medical doctor as he was brought up in a low-income family. Later on, he enrolled at Rutgers University to pursue a degree in pharmacy.

Career

After completing his college degree, Bernard Marcus started his career as a pharmacist at a dispensary. After some time, he shifted his interest toward the retailing side of the business.

Bernard left his job at the drugstore and started working in a cosmetics company. He also tried his luck with a few other companies.

After working so hard in various companies for several years, he made his way to the position of chief executive officer at a company named Handy Dan Improvement Centers. It was a home improvement store based in Los Angeles.

In the year 1979, Mr. Marcus teamed up with an investment partner named Arthur Blank and they founded the home improvement store called the Home Depot. They were also assisted by the investment banker Ken Langone and even by the merchandising expert Pat Farrah.

Marcus and Blank came up with the revolutionary idea of founding a warehouse. Their business boomed and shot to its highest peak and made the main partners of the company billionaires.

Marcus led the company as the first Chief Executive Officer before serving as the Chairman of the Board of the company until his retirement in 2002. For his success in the business industry, he was recognized with the junior achievement American Business Hall of Fame.

In January 2014, Marcus established a job creator network which still serves its purpose to date. The main purpose for which this network was created is to recruit small business entrepreneurs and executives and equip them with the means to connect to the people and potential clients through advertisements, spokespersons, and television appearances.

Personal Life

Mr. Bernard Marcus has had a straightforward personal life according to what has been made available in the media. He has never been the subject of controversies like some of his peers in business.

He was married twice and had two children. His first wife, Ruth, is the mother of his first child named Frederick Marcus. His second child, Susanne Marcus Collins, is a product of his marriage with his second wife, Bill. Bill also has another child, a son named Michael Morris from a previous relationship.

Since retiring from The Home Depot company, Mr. Marcus has focused primarily on philanthropic work. Over the years, he launched the Marcus Institute as a center for people with developmental disabilities. He also made a $250 million donation to the Georgia Aquarium, known to be the largest aquarium in the world.

Bernard Marcus Net Worth

Bernard Marcus, the American entrepreneur and investor who also leads a charitable lifestyle as a philanthropist, is reported to currently own a net worth of $6 billion dollars. His wealth ranks him among the wealthiest men residing in Georgia today.

After spending the earliest days of his career working as a pharmacist, he found the retail sector of drugstore management more interesting and swiftly shifted his gaze to what he felt mattered the most. He worked for various retail companies and chains and eventually became chief executive officer of Handy Dan Improvement Centers. After he and a co-worker were laid off after a disagreement with the board, the two men co-founded The Home Depot in 1979, and it is this company that has provided most of his wealth.

The Home Depot, Inc., simply known as Home Depot, is the largest home improvement retailer in America, supplying tools, appliances,  construction products, and services. The company operates many big-box format stores across the US, all 32 Mexican states and Mexico City, and all 10 provinces of Canada.