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Herbert H. Haft (August 24, 1920 – September 1, 2004) was a Washington, D.C. based businessman who was famous first for the development of discount stores in the drug store, bookstore, and auto part businesses, and later as a corporate raider. ==Biography== Haft grew up in Baltimore, Maryland, the son of a Russian-immigrant pharmacist. Trained as a pharmacist at George Washington University, Haft opened the first Dart Drug discount store in 1955 in Washington, which he sold in 1984 at which time the chain had 75 stores. He also founded (with family members) Crown Books (which was led by son Robert Haft), Trak Auto, Combined Properties,〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://www.combined.biz/about/overview/ )〕 and Total Beverage, and acquired part of Shoppers Food Warehouse. Haft's ''Dart Group'' earned $250 million through greenmail and stock sales during unsuccessful takeover attempts of retailers Safeway and Stop & Shop. In the 1990s he was involved in widely publicized conflict with his sons Ronald and Robert Haft, and wife Gloria Haft over control of the Dart Group, a family business. In a 1986 speech to a group of George Washington University alumni, Haft said that the secret of his success, was to borrow big: "If you owe someone several thousand dollars, you can't always sleep at night. If you owe someone several million dollars, the banker or supplier can't sleep. It's no use both of you worrying." In 1998, Total Beverage was sold to Total Wine & More and the remainder of Dart Group, except Crown Books, was purchased by Richfood, a grocery distributor for $200 million. Richfood quickly sold Trak Auto to a Tennessee investment group. Crown Books filed for bankruptcy, and limped along on private investment until its closure in 2001. In 1999, Herbert Haft launched HealthQuick, an online pharmacy, while his son Robert launched Vitamins.com. HealthQuick failed by 2001. Herbert Haft died from heart disease on September 1, 2004, at a Washington D.C. hospital. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Herbert Haft」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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