Erling Persson

Erling Persson
Born(1917-01-21)21 January 1917
Borlänge, Sweden
Died28 October 2002(2002-10-28) (aged 85)
Stockholm, Sweden
Known forFounder of H&M
ChildrenStefan Persson
Lottie Tham
RelativesKarl-Johan Persson (grandson)
Charlotte Söderström (granddaughter)
Tom Persson (grandson)

Erling Persson (21 January 1917 – 28 October 2002) was the founder of H&M (Hennes & Mauritz).[1][2] He got the idea following a post-World War II trip to the United States: He was impressed by the country's efficient, high-volume stores.[2]

He established the company in Västerås, Sweden, in 1947 selling women's clothing, calling it Hennes, Swedish for "hers." In 1968, Persson acquired the premises and inventory of a Stockholm hunting equipment store named Mauritz Widforss. In 1982, his son, Stefan Persson took over as the managing director, and today is the chairman of the board.[2] The Persson family owns about 47% of the company and has a 74% voting rights.[3]

  1. ^ "Erling Persson obituary". The Telegraph. 13 November 2002. Retrieved 28 April 2015.
  2. ^ a b c Watson, Linda (2 November 2002). "Erling Persson: Founder of the fashion retailer H&M". The Independent. Archived from the original on June 19, 2010. Retrieved 25 September 2010.
  3. ^ E24. "H&M-leverandører sparker tusenvis av misfornøyde ansatte". E24 (in Norwegian Bokmål). Retrieved 2019-02-05.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)