George Ludlum Hartford

George Ludlum Hartford (November 7, 1864 - September 23, 1957) was an executive with the Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company ("A&P") and successor to his father, George Huntington Hartford with brother John Augustine Hartford. Hartford was considered the "financial genius" at the firm, working together with his brother John, the firm's "merchandising power", to build a chain of 4,200 stores and $4.5 billion in annual sales at the time of his death.cite news |first= |last= |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=George Hartford of A&P Dies at 92. Chairman of Giant Chain Was Considered Financial Genius Behind Expansion Started Mass Buying Lost Antitrust Action. |url=http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F20610F83B5A177B93C7AB1782D85F438585F9 |quote=George Ludlum Hartford, chairman of the Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company, died last night of uremia at his home, 3 Crestmont Road. |publisher=New York Times |date=September 25, 1957 |accessdate=2008-06-15 ]

Biography

Hartford was born in Brooklyn, New York on November 7, 1864, and moved to Orange, New Jersey as a four-year-old. He started working for A&P on evenings and weekends at age 13, and his career spanned 80 years with the firm. He attended Saint Benedict's Preparatory School in Newark, New Jersey.

He was behind A&P's efforts at private label baking soda, and later, coffee ("Eight O'Clock Coffee"), as part of an effort to work around high wholesale costs for these items. The two brothers were behind the change of the firm's name from the "Great Atlantic Tea Company" to the "Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company", capitalizing on the railroad with a similar name. Beginning with a model store in Newark, the firm grew to 3,000 stores by 1915, and had reached a peak of 6,000 stores nationwide.

He moved to Montclair, New Jersey in 1908 after his marriage. He died at his home there on September 23, 1957.

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