SAN DIEGO, July 21 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- WD-40 Company announced the passing of WD-40's longtime president, John S. (Jack) Barry. Mr. Barry was born in Minneapolis, MN. August 31, 1924, and passed away peacefully in La Jolla, CA, on July 3, 2009.
He was instrumental in guiding WD-40's dramatic growth for more than two decades. He joined the company as president in 1969, was elected to the board the next year and continued as chairman upon his retirement in 1990.
"Jack truly had a vision for the company to build brand loyalty that remains a strength of our operation," said Garry O. Ridge, president and CEO of WD-40 Company. "He presided over WD-40 Company as we grew from a small company into a public company that has achieved global distribution for our brands. "
WD-40 reported sales of $2 million during Mr. Barry's first year as president. He was instrumental in changing the name of the company from Rocket Chemical Company to WD-40 Company. Within five years the company turned public, reporting sales in 1974 of $10.4 million. Under Mr. Barry's direction, the company reported a series of high-growth years - sometimes increasing revenue as much as 33 percent - and by 1990 revenue totaled $90.9 million.
Mr. Barry was a former Navy Supply Corps Officer who went on to get a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Minnesota and a master's of Business and Engineering Administration from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Mr. Barry became a member of the Beta Theta Pi social fraternity. His high marks earned him a place in Tau Beta Pi and Pi Tau Sigma honorary Engineering Societies.
Prior to joining WD-40, Mr. Barry worked in new product development, marketing and sales at 3M Corp., Solar Aircraft, Interpace and Avery Label. He also was general manager of Adams Rite Manufacturing Co.
To honor his legacy, WD-40 Company will be making a donation in his name to the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation.
WD-40 Company, with headquarters in San Diego, is a global consumer product company dedicated to delivering unique, high value and easy-to-use solutions for a wide variety of maintenance needs of "doer" and "on-the-job" users by leveraging and building the brand fortress of the Company. The Company markets two multi-purpose maintenance product brands, WD-40(R), and 3-IN-ONE(R), and eight homecare and cleaning product brands, X-14(R) hard surface cleaners and automatic toilet bowl cleaners, 2000 Flushes(R) automatic toilet bowl cleaners, Carpet Fresh(R ) and No Vac (R) rug and room deodorizers, Spot Shot(R) aerosol and liquid carpet stain removers, 1001(R) carpet and household cleaners and rug and room deodorizers, and Lava (R) and Solvol (R) heavy-duty hand cleaners.
WD-40 Company markets its products in more than 160 countries worldwide and recorded sales of $317.1 million in fiscal year 2008. Additional information about WD-40 Company can be obtained online at http://www.wd40company.com.
SOURCE WD-40 Company
