Erling Persson

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Erling Persson (1917 - October 28, 2002) was the founder of H&M (Hennes&Mauritz). He got the idea following a post-WWII trip to the U.S. as he was very impressed by efficient, high-volume outfits like Macy’s and Barneys.

In 1968, Erling Persson bought Mauritz Widforss, a hunting and gun store located in Sergelgatan, Stockholm. A stock of men's clothing came with the store, so the company began selling men's and women's clothes and changed its name to Hennes & Mauritz ("hennes" meaning "hers" in Swedish").

In 1982, Erling Persson's son, Stefan Persson took over the position as the Managing Director, and today he is the Chairman of the Board. The Persson family owns about 33% of the company and has a 69% voting right.