The Resume

(February 17, 1843-December 7, 1913)
Born in Chatham, New Jersey
Founded Montgomery Ward & Company (1872)
Invented first mail order retail business

Why he might be annoying:

He shared his name with an ice hockey player.
None of his friends or business acquaintances joined in his enthusiasm for his revolutionary idea of a mail order catalog system.
One year after he founded his eponymous retailer, his business partners abandoned him.
When his company closed its doors in 2001, it was, at the time, the largest retail bankruptcy liquidation in US history.

Why he might not be annoying:

He grew up in a large and poor family.
At age fourteen, he first earned 25 cents per day at a cutting machine in a barrel stave factory, and then stacking brick in a kiln at 30 cents a day.
During his time spent working at Field Palmer (a forerunner to Marshall Fields), he observed that rural customers often wanted 'city' goods but were often victimized by monopolists who offered no guarantee of quality.
He also believed that by eliminating intermediaries, he could cut costs and make a wide variety of goods available to rural customers, who could purchase goods by mail and pick them up at the nearest train station.
Despite a rough start, his mail order catalog retailer became a success.
As a staunch environmentalist, he fought for the preservation of Chicago's Grant Park.
'Forbes' magazine readers and editors ranked him as the 16th most influential businessman of all time.

Credit: Birdienest81

Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

• Birdienest81's Profiles [Series 11]
• Forbes' 20 Most Influential Businessmen of All Time [2006] (Ranked: 16)
• I Died in 1913 (Ranked: 70)
• I Died on Pearl Harbor Day [December 7] (Ranked: 1913)
• In Town for The World's Fair at the Columbian Exposition [1893-Chicago]
• My Name, My Company
• People who Have Similar Names on Am I Annoying (Ranked: 599)
• Profiles 33251-33500 (Ranked: 33369)

Year In Review:

In 2023, Out of 9 Votes: 44.44% Annoying
In 2022, Out of 4 Votes: 25.00% Annoying
In 2021, Out of 11 Votes: 63.64% Annoying
In 2020, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
In 2019, Out of 7 Votes: 42.86% Annoying
In 2018, Out of 3 Votes: 0% Annoying
In 2017, Out of 8 Votes: 37.50% Annoying
In 2016, Out of 5 Votes: 20.0% Annoying
In 2015, Out of 10 Votes: 60.0% Annoying
In 2014, Out of 10 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
In 2013, Out of 9 Votes: 44.44% Annoying
In 2012, Out of 9 Votes: 22.22% Annoying