John Leo Blair

John Leo Blair (1888–1962) was an American businessman. He was the founder of New Process Company, now known simply as Blair Corporation – a direct market retail company. He was also an author, inventor, a pioneer in direct marketing, and an advisor to President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and to Treasury Secretary, Henry Morgenthau, Jr. Several letters and notes exist in company archives, including a letter from Franklin D. Roosevelt, a few from Henry Morgenthau, Jr., and others from Charles Merrill of Merrill & Lynch, Supreme Court Justice Robert H. Jackson (one of Blair's very close friends) and others to support this entry.

Blair was very successful at a relatively young age. He traveled all over the world before the days of airliners. He met Popes Pius XI and Pius XII and was a long-time friend of Cardinal Francis Spellman. Blair contributed significantly to the healing of our nation's economy during the Great Depression and his company has provided employment to many thousands of associates, and has provided billions of quality, affordable products to millions of Americans.

John L. Blair was apparently driven, in part, by a curiosity of the human mind and its motivations. For several years, Robert Collier, the famous author of early self-help books, worked closely with John Blair in developing sales methods and effective copy writing. Collier wrote that John Blair "seemed to divine naturally what it takes most of us many years to learn, i.e. that regardless of what we have to offer, it is not merchandise that we are selling, but human nature, human reactions."

Robert Collier attributed this faculty in John Blair to an incident which took place when he was just a boy. His mother sent John out to play and the curious lad, seeing a shiny object in a fountain, leaned in to retrieve it, losing his balance. As he caught what might have been his last breath, a passing workman rescued the young boy. Although his life was saved he began to suffer from asthma, which for years threatened his health. Unable to engage in many of the activities of youth, Blair became an avid reader and student of human nature.

Collier also wrote the preface for a book John Blair authored, entitled "The Book of Success."

Born in Warren, Pennsylvania, on Jun 24, 1888, John L. Blair graduated high school there in 1904. He immediately left for the west coast for a year spent exploring the world outside of his small hometown. Shortly after returning home, Blair enrolled in a three-year law degree program at the University of Pennsylvania, located in Philadelphia, PA.

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