John Barry dies at 84; former executive made WD-40 a household name
John Barry, the unpretentious Midwesterner who made a San Diego product called WD-40 into a national sensation by "breaking all the Harvard Business School rules," died July 3 at a skilled nursing facility in La Jolla of pulmonary fibrosis. He was 84.
Barry's business genius during three decades at the company was in emphasizing brand loyalty for a lubricant that fights rust and eliminates squeaks. He preached the value of staying focused on your product and your market, and not being distracted.
"He had a saying: 'Don't be like a blind dog in a meat house,' " said Garry O. Ridge, WD-40 Co.'s current president and chief executive officer.
As WD-40, in its blue-and-yellow spray can, began to become more popular in the early 1970s, Barry, as president and CEO, led the drive to take the company public. But he resisted advice from business gurus that said a one-product company was a bad investment.
He declined suggestions that WD-40 expand to other products, engage in slick advertising or partner with large retailers.
In later years, he liked to show visitors his "graveyard of imitators," products developed by larger companies that failed to break into the market. He told reporters that he owed his company's success to breaking all the rules about mergers and acquisitions and shelf-space in stores.
"When you have a good product, don't tinker with it," Barry said.
He avoided the trappings of corporate life. He answered his own phone, he flew coach and he held business meetings at Denny's restaurants. He insisted that subordinates call him Jack.
"Dad was a meat-and-potatoes guy," said his son Randy, who works in the operations supply part of WD-40.
Barry never hid behind publicists and he often had a snappy quote.
John Barry dies at 84; former executive made WD-40 a household name - Los Angeles Times
Barry's business genius during three decades at the company was in emphasizing brand loyalty for a lubricant that fights rust and eliminates squeaks. He preached the value of staying focused on your product and your market, and not being distracted.
"He had a saying: 'Don't be like a blind dog in a meat house,' " said Garry O. Ridge, WD-40 Co.'s current president and chief executive officer.
As WD-40, in its blue-and-yellow spray can, began to become more popular in the early 1970s, Barry, as president and CEO, led the drive to take the company public. But he resisted advice from business gurus that said a one-product company was a bad investment.
He declined suggestions that WD-40 expand to other products, engage in slick advertising or partner with large retailers.
In later years, he liked to show visitors his "graveyard of imitators," products developed by larger companies that failed to break into the market. He told reporters that he owed his company's success to breaking all the rules about mergers and acquisitions and shelf-space in stores.
"When you have a good product, don't tinker with it," Barry said.
He avoided the trappings of corporate life. He answered his own phone, he flew coach and he held business meetings at Denny's restaurants. He insisted that subordinates call him Jack.
"Dad was a meat-and-potatoes guy," said his son Randy, who works in the operations supply part of WD-40.
Barry never hid behind publicists and he often had a snappy quote.
John Barry dies at 84; former executive made WD-40 a household name - Los Angeles Times
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