Harry B. Cohen

Harry B. Cohen, born in Winnipeg, Manitoba (1912-1990), was a Canadian entrepreneur, community builder, philanthropist, and Member of the Order of Canada.

Background

Harry Cohen came from a poor immigrant family of eight, the son of Alexander and Rose (Diamond) Cohen. He quit school at age 15 to help support them. Working as a doorman at a theater in Winnipeg, he obtained a job at Warner Bros. as a film inspector during the Great Depression. In 1932, he was transferred by Warner to Calgary, Alberta. Taking a liking to the city, he persuaded his entire family to move West in 1934. They arrived broke, and their arrival marked the beginning of an amazing success story.

Harry's five brothers, Albert, John, Morley, Sam, and Joseph H. Cohen, set up a small retail store and, by 1939, the family had scraped together enough monies to create General Distributors Ltd., a wholesale import firm. While his brothers went off to war, Harry (disqualified from service because of stomach ulcers), attended to the familiy business while still working for Warner Bros.. It is during this time that he met and married Martha Cohen, who would eventually become one of Calgary's leading female community-builders and receive national recognition for her many accomplishments.

Sony and the Cohen Brothers

By 1950, General Distributors sales amounted to $1 million. In the early Fifties, the company obtained obtained exclusive Canadian rights for Paper Mate pens. Then, in 1955, brother Albert D. Cohen accomplished the most amazing feat of landing the Canadian distribution rights to Sony products. Spotting an ad in a Japanese newspaper seeking a distributor for a new portable transistor radio, Albert met with Sony co-founder, Akio Morita. On the basis of a handshake deal, Albert cemented a partnership that would last for decades. The Cohen brothers scattered across Canada in order to manage the national business, each brother establishing himself in a major city: Morley (Montreal), John (Toronto), Joe (Vancouver), Harry (Calgary), and both Sam and Albert setting up headquarters (Winnipeg).

SAAN, Metropolitan, real estate, and the Cohen Brothers

The six brothers expanded into real estate and retailing. Over the years, they established several hundred SAAN and Metropolitan junior department stores in all provinces of Canada. The explosive growth of the SAAN chain was guided by Samuel N. Cohen while Metropolitan's expansion was overseen by Morley Cohen. At one point, it is said the Cohen brothers owned downtown real estate in almost every major Canadian city. By 1983, the company was a diversified Canadian conglomerate, renamed "Gendis."

Philanthropy

Harry Cohen was considered to be one of the major community builders/philanthropists in Calgary. Volunteering for some 30 organizations (his favorite being the Boy Scouts), he was known for his generosity and warm spirit. Cohen ascribed his desire to help others as a result of growing up impoverished and never forgetting where he came from. His partner in philanthropy, wife Martha Cohen, is best known for creating the Calgary Centre for the Performing Arts in the downtown area. As a surprise birthday gift, Harry donated one million dollars toward the facility in 1983 and had a theater named after her.

Awards

Harry and Martha Cohen have the distinct honor of being the first couple to be named to the Order of Canada. Harry received his Order of Canada in 1975 and his honorary doctorate from the University of Calgary in 1973.

Harry and Martha Cohen Award

In 1985, Harry and Martha's four children (Philip, Chery, Faye, and David) established an annual award for individuals making outstanding contributions to the Arts.

Harry Cohen remembered today

Upon his death in 1990, it is said that the very popular Harry Cohen had one of the largest funerals held in Calgary. Today, daughter Cheryl has assumed leadership of The Harry and Martha Cohen Foundation whose growing endowment seeds all variety of community projects, from the medical to the educational fields.