Carl Bennett, Greenwich Resident & Founder Of Caldor, Dead At 101

GREENWICH, CT — Carl Bennett, a Greenwich resident and founder of the Caldor department store chain, died on Dec. 23. He was 101.

According to his obituary, Bennett was born in Greenwich on Jan. 27, 1920, and he was raised above his father’s grocery store on Steamboat Road with his two sisters and two brothers.

Bennett graduated from Greenwich High School and attended New York University, his obituary said, and he served in World War II from 1942 to 1945 in the 466th Quartermaster Battalion.

After returning home from the war, Bennett became a wholesale liquor salesman for Connecticut Distributors in nearby Norwalk. Bennett met Dorothy Becker, of Forest Hills, N.Y., through a family connection, and the two got married soon after, his obituary said.

The couple decided to open up their own discount store after shopping together at E.J. Korvettes Department Store. Bennett combined both his and his wife’s name, and Caldor was born.

Bennett saved up money from his military days, and was given a loan of $50,000 by Harold Rider, the president of Union Trust, who believed in the the Bennetts’ vision, his obituary said. The Bennett's opened their first store in 1951 in Port Chester, N.Y., and later expanded to Stamford, Norwalk and Riverside.

In 1961, according to his obituary, Caldor became publicly traded on the American Stock Exchange. Bennett moved the company headquarters to Glover Avenue in Norwalk.

Bennett later received Israel's Prime Minister Award for distinguished service in 1973, and was named Discounter of the Year in 1982. Bennett was inducted into the Retailer Hall of Fame in 1983 along with Sam Walton, a close friend and the founder and chairman of Wal-Mart.

In 1983, Caldor reached $1 billion in sales. Bennett and his wife led Caldor until the business and all 120 stores were sold to Associated Dry Goods in the mid-1980’s.

According to his obituary, Bennett is survived by his three children: Marc of Stamford, Robin (Joseph Kanarek) of Greenwich, Bruce (Jennifer) of Rochester, N.Y. and five grandchildren. He was predeceased by Dorothy in 2008, his siblings Frank, Sarah (Potash), Esther (Brandwein) and Harry, and his grandson, David Kanarek.

Read Bennett's full obituary