An Open Book
Henry Ward Beecher once said “Where is human nature so weak as in the bookstore?” While undoubtedly still true today, our concept of the "bookstore" has evolved dramatically over the centuries with an acceleration of change in the past 10 years upon the advent of the Internet and other cultural shifts. A lifelong reader who devours several books a week while heading a global book retail organization, Greg Josefowicz (KSM79), in this presentation, will illuminate his journey from bananas (as former president of grocer Jewel-Osco) to books and how the centuries-old business of selling books provides interesting insights into our world today.
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About the Presenter
Gregory P. Josefowicz (KSM79), Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, Borders Group, Inc.
As Chief Executive Officer of Borders Group, Inc., (NYSE: BGP) Greg Josefowicz leads a global retail organization that annually serves more than 30 million customers worldwide in over 1,200 Borders Books and Music and Waldenbooks stores. Josefowicz joined Borders Group in 1999 just in time to address the company’s strategic response to Internet bookselling and rapid growth in book superstores. Under his leadership, Borders Group entered into a groundbreaking alliance with Amazon.com in 2001 and has continued to grow its superstore business domestically and abroad as the only U.S. based book superstore chain to expand internationally. Today, the company posts annual revenues of $3.7 billion and employs over 32,000. Prior to joining Borders Group, Josefowicz had a long career with Jewel-Osco, a Midwest food and drug store chain. He began working at Jewel-Osco as a high school student in 1968 and worked his way up to the position of company president, which he assumed in 1997. A graduate of Michigan State University, Josefowicz also holds a master’s degree from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management and serves on the school’s Management Advisory Board.
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