Article Number : 4649 |
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| Date | 7/14/2009 8:40:15 AM |
| Written By | LGM & Associates Technical Flooring Services |
| View this article at: | //floorbiz.com/BizResources/NPViewArticle.asp?ArticleID=4649 |
| Abstract | BOYNTON BEACH, FLA.—A heightened sense of humor, an affinity for business and an entrepreneurial bent, mix that with generous doses of charisma and you have Ira Arnowich. He spent his entire 50-year career in... |
| Article | BOYNTON BEACH, FLA.—A heightened sense of humor, an affinity for business and an entrepreneurial bent, mix that with generous doses of charisma and you have Ira Arnowich. He spent his entire 50-year career in the industry in manufacturing, distributing and retailing. Five years ago his health failed, causing him to retire and eventually relocate here. He died in a local hospital of kidney failure on June 9. He was 76. Arnowich was born in Brooklyn on Aug. 11, 1932, and graduated from Boys High School. During the Korean conflict, in 1951 at age 19, he entered the Air Force and served until 1954. Soon after his discharge, he joined Colonial Carpet, a Brooklyn-based distributor, as a salesman and remained with the company for five years. In 1959, he joined Trend Mills and after a year was promoted to district manager. Three years later he was hired by Monarch Carpet Mills, a division of E.T. Barwick Industries. Impressed with the company and its products, in 1968 with Barwick’s blessing, he decided to start his own business, a Monarch distributorship, with partners Jerry Frost and Armand Marano. Called Arlington Carpet Co., the warehouse, showroom and office facility was located in Greenvale, Long Island, and the company’s territory included New York, New Jersey and parts of Connecticut. In 1974, Arlington moved to Hauppauge, N.Y., where it continued to grow and incentivize dealers with trips to Paris, Monaco the Caribbean among other destinations. In the mid-’70s, Barwick began having difficulties; in addition to a sharp decline in business, the company was cited by the Securities & Exchange Commission for wrongdoing. As Barwick’s plight worsened, Arlington’s situation became bleak and in 1978, the Monarch distributor closed its doors. Undaunted, Arnowich entered the retail business. He bought a 50% stake from Arthur Ephron in Redi-Cut Carpet, a six-store specialty chain with the main unit on Webster Ave. in the Bronx. The partners were aggressive marketers and in the ensuing decade expanded to 16 stores. After a 12-year relationship, Arnowich bought Ephron’s share and became the sole owner. He gradually sold the stores in the chain and divested himself of all but one, the unit in Westport, Conn., which he gave to his sons, Fred and Alan. In 2004, he became ill and decided to end his 50-year career and retire. In 2007, he and his wife moved to Florida. Arnowich was very funny and he enjoyed making people laugh. He was at his best when he teamed with another comic, a straight man or fall guy, to make the action even more hilarious. His zany antics with Herb Wolk, another legendary retailer, and Vince Pisani, floor covering buyer for Abraham & Strauss, were classic and memorable. He would often add comic relief and a measure of excitement to a market or business gathering that drifted into boredom. Colleagues agree, he was one of a kind—rare and precious. Alan Braunstein, president of Worldwide Wholesale Co. of Edison and Princeton, N.J., a longtime friend, called Arnowich an “extraordinary individual. He had an unwavering dedication to his business and his family and he loved both deeply. He was a very funny man, warm and caring, and he was a great businessman, an innovator. He was a wonderful father and grandfather…a killer competitor but an incomparable father and grandfather. He was passionate about the people he loved and the things he loved to do. So many people will miss him.” Survivors include his wife of 53 years, Sandra; sons Fred, Alan and Harry; daughter, Adrian, and 10 grandchildren. |