Larry Gagosian and His Passion for the Arts

Lawrence Gilbert Gagosian has established a reputation for being one of the best organizers of world-class arts exhibitions. As an art dealer, he has worked with the likes of Keith Barish, Eli Broad, and Douglas S. Cramer, among other notable art collectors, for this purpose. He also owns the well-known Gagosian Gallery chain of art galleries.

Gagosian built his career in the art world by selling posters near UCLA’s campus in Los Angeles. When he upgraded his business to selling prints by more renowned artists like Lee Friedlander and Diane Arbus, his business took off especially when his Broxton Gallery began working with emerging artists like Elyn Zimmerman, Alexis Smith, and Vija Celmins.

In 1978, Gagosian opened his first gallery where the works of art of up-and-coming artists like Chris Burden, Eric Fischl, Jean-Michel Basquiat, and Cindy Sherman were displayed. In the early 1980s, his business boomed when he resold the works of contemporary blue-chip artists as well as when he established partnerships with super collectors, such as David Geffen and David Ganek.

Catchick Paul Chater’s Life of Inspiration

Sir Catchick Paul Chater, CMG (8 September 1846 – 27 May 1926) lived a life that can inspire others to become better persons not just for themselves but for society, too. Born as Khachik Pogose Astwachatoor in then-British India, he was one of thirteen children of Miriam and Chater Paul Chater, both of whom were of Armenian descent.

Orphaned at a young age, he became a scholar at the La Martiniere College in Calcutta where he later became its most generous benefactor. His large donation saved the school from certain closure and he was honored by the school by including his name in the school prayer.

In 1864, he moved to Hong Kong and lived with one of his siblings. He first worked at the Bank of Hindustan, China and Japan as an assistant. He later set up a business as an exchange broker wherein he traded land and gold bullion using his own account; his first investors was the Sassoon family. He was instrumental in the planning for reclamation of the Victoria Harbour, which worked to his advantage considering his business interests, as well as in acquiring lands for the government.

In 1868, he co-founded Chater & Mody with Sir Hormusjee Naorojee Mody, which was a largely successful business. In 1886, he assisted Patrick Manson in establishing Dairy Farm and he became a member of the Legislative Council, too.

In 1889, he co-founded Hongkong Land with James Johnstone Keswick; the company was responsible for the colony’s land reclamation project. He was also one of the brains behind the construction of one of the world’s earliest power stations with the establishment of the Hongkong Electric Company in 1890.

In 1896, he was appointed as a member of the Executive Council, a position that he held until 1926. He was knighted in 1902, an honor that he considered as the cream of the crop considering his numerous designations.

Granger K. Costikyan And His Successful Oriental Carpet Business

Granger Kent Costikyan (29 March 1907 – 10 March 1998) was a well-known Armenian-American banker whose brilliance in banking was put to good use in several banks. His father, who hailed from Turkey (then known as the Ottoman Empire), brought his family from Constantinople to the United States in 1884. His father established Costikyan Freres, which is currently known as Kent-Costikyan, Inc., a successful import firm specializing in oriental carpets; the business prides itself on centuries of carpet-making traditions resulting in world-class carpets for domestic and international distribution.

Instead of going into the family business, Costikyan went into banking and finance. He was educated at Hotchkiss School and then proceeded to get his university degree at Yale University; he graduated in 1929.

He worked with several banking firms including the New York Trust Company (1929 to 1959); the Brown Brothers Harriman as partner for several years; Vice President of the Chemical Bank of New York (1959 to 1962); Senior Vice President of the First Bank System of Minneapolis (1962 to 1969); and Chairman of the First Bank System of Minneapolis.

Richard Donchian: Pioneer in Managed Futures

Richard Davoud Donchian (1905 - 1993) was a well-known Armenian-American trader in commodities and futures as well as an acknowledged pioneer in managed futures. In 1949, he started the world’s first publicly-managed futures fund, Futures, Inc., as well as developed several concepts including the trend timing method for investments in futures and the mutual fund concept for money management.

Indeed, he is considered as the father of the managed futures industry! He is also considered as the brains behind the development of a systematic approach toward the management of futures. He dedicated his professional trading knowledge and skills in promoting a more conservative approach toward futures trading.

Donchian has a bachelor’s degree in economics from Yale University. He has a master’s degree in business administration from the MIT Sloan School of Management. His first job was as shop assistant in the family-owned Oriental rug business, a time when he read the fictionalized biography of Jesse Livermore, a stock market whiz.

He became fascinated with the financial markets, studied them on a deeper level, and invested his money in them. He studied technical analysis and price history after losing money in the financial markets during the 1929 market crash, which would later serve him well.

In the 1930s, he began his career in Wall Street including the publication of Security Pilot, a highly popular stock market service, which was distributed to brokerage houses. He worked as a securities analyst and account executive with Hemphill, Noyes and Co. while still working as the Vice President for the family-owned business, Samuel Rug Company.

After World War II, Donchian was self-employed private investment adviser and securities analyst until 1960. He shifted his focus on active trading as well as development his rule-based technical trading system, which resulted in his creation of Futures, Inc.

He was a member of several stock exchanges and professional market associations, such as the New York Cotton Exchange and the New York Society of Security Analysts, throughout his career.

Clarence Saunders: Pioneer in Modern Retail Sales

Clarence Saunders (9 August 9, 1881 – 23 September 1953) is widely considered as a pioneer in the modern retail sales model involving self-service among customers. Emphasis must be made that before he implemented the model in his stores, customers largely relied on the grocers and their assistants to gather their items for them.

His ideas in the grocery business had a massive impact on the emergence and development of the modern supermarket. Saunders, indeed, was known for his dedication to the development of a truly automated store. He was, after all, the brains behind the Piggly Wiggly, Foodelectric, and Keedoozle store concepts.

He started his career in the grocery industry as a clerk in a general store when he was just 14 years old. He worked in various odd jobs include a coke plant and sawmill before returning to the industry where he eventually made his mark.

After gaining valuable insights into the industry, he started his self-service revolution by opening the first Piggly Wiggly store in Memphis, Tennessee – and the rest is history.

Sam Phillips: An Influential Force in Rock ‘n Roll and Rockabilly

While Samuel Cornelius Phillips (5 January 1923 – 30 July 2003) may not have been as famous as the rock stars of the 1950s through the 1970s, he was certainly one of the most instrumental persons in the development of both rock ‘n roll and rockabilly as the dominant forms of music in the 1950s. He was, after all, a recognized musician, music producer, record executive, and disc jockey in the United States’ industry.

Phillips was not just any record executive because he was the founder of two of the budding music industry’s foremost record labels – Sun Records and Sun Studio, both located in Memphis, Tennessee. He discovered legendary musicians like Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Howlin’ Wolf through his Sun labels. His most crowning glory, furthermore, was the launching of The King’s – Elvis Presley – career in 1954, an achievement that cemented his place in the music industry.

His music industry-related achievements also include the launching of several country, rhythm and blues, and rock ‘n roll musicians. He was such a prolific discoverer of talents that his Sun labels were sought after by aspiring musicians. He sold Sun, however, in 1969.

Phillips is also known in the music industry for being one of the strongest advocates for racial equality. This was at a time when black musicians were encountering challenges entering the music industry, much less becoming known for their music, due to the strong racial discrimination. His efforts significantly contributed to the breaking down of racial barriers in the industry.

Aside from his contributions to the music industry, Phillips was a savvy investor and businessman as well. He was among the first investors of Holiday In, Roy Scott’s new motel chain on the verge of its national launching. He also founded several other companies including Holiday Inn Records, Phillips International, Sun Studio Café, and Big River Broadcasting.

Phillips has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Rockabilly Hall of Fame, the Alabama Music Hall of Fame, the Blues Hall of Fame, and the Country Music Hall of Fame. He also received a Grammy Trustees Award.

Percy Barnevik: CEO and Chairman of ABB and Co-founder of Hand in Hand

Percy Nils Barnevik is a well-known Swedish business executive whose track record in the industry is filled with successes with a few stumbling steps along the way. He is best known for his success as Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of Asea Brown Boveri (ABV) from 1988 to 2002 as well as co-founder of Hand in Hand, a non-profit organization.

Barnevik earned his degrees from prestigious schools including the Göteborg University's School of Business, Economics and Law as well as the Stanford Graduate School of Business. His business achievements also led to his honorary doctorate degrees from various universities in Sweden, Finland, and the United States, such as the Goterborg University in 1991 and Linkoping University 1989. He is also a recipient of the 1993 IEEE Engineering Leadership Recognition Award.

He co-founded Hand in Hand, a charitable organization, with Dr. Kalpana Sankar in India. Hand in Hand fights poverty via comprehensive programs in business and job creation across several countries including India, Kenya, South Africa, Rwanda, Swaziland, Zimbabwe, Lesotho, Afghanistan, Myanmar, and Cambodia.