Billionaire Home Depot co-founder and Trump donor Bernard “Bernie” Marcus has passed away at the age of 95.
Marcus, who was a former pharmacist, was described as “a master merchant and a genius with customer service” and was also “unparalleled in generosity and goodwill” in the statement by the company.
“The entire Home Depot family is deeply saddened by the death of our co-founder Bernie Marcus,” the statement reads. “We owe an immeasurable debt of gratitude to Bernie.”
The billionaire built his fortune by co-founding Home Depot alongside Arthur Blank in 1978. The home improvement retail giant, which started in Atlanta, has expanded to over 2,000 stores across the U.S. and boasts a stock market valuation approaching $400 billion.
According to Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index, Marcus’s net worth was approximately $7.4 billion. He was a significant donor to the U.S. Republican Party, particularly in support of Donald Trump.
He and his wife, Billi, contributed $7 million to committees backing Trump’s 2016 campaign and an additional $7.9 million to support Republicans in the 2018 midterm elections.
By September of this election cycle, Marcus had again donated over $1 million in support of Trump. He also gave millions to other Republican campaigns, including those of the late John McCain and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.
In a 2022 interview with the Financial Times, Marcus expressed concerns about capitalism, claiming that “socialism” was gaining ground in the U.S., leading to a culture where “nobody works, nobody cares. ‘Just give it to me. Send me money. I don’t want to work – I’m too lazy, I’m too fat, I’m too stupid.'”
The hardware tycoon faced a boycott in 2019 after announcing his support for Donald Trump, prompting some customers to avoid Home Depot stores. In response, the company, whose retired co-founder he was, sought to distance itself from his political positions.
