M.B. Zale; Started Jewelry Store Chain

Morris Bernard (M.B.) Zale, a poor Russian immigrant who dropped out of school in the sixth grade but founded a $1.2-billion jewelry company based on an inventive concept, has died at 93.

Zale, founder of the Dallas-based Zale Corp., died Wednesday of complications from pneumonia, said his son, Donald Zale, chairman and chief executive officer of the chain when it was sold in 1986.

Morris Zale was credited with revolutionizing jewelry retailing in the United States by using bold newspaper ads and gifts to attract customers, extending credit to the working class, and offering a profit-sharing program, sales training and corporate child-care center to his employees.

Zale emigrated from Russia with his family in 1908. The family moved to Ft. Worth, where Zale was forced to drop out of school because he did not have enough money for books, Donald Zale said.

In 1924, Morris Zale co-founded the Zale Jewelry Co. with his uncle. At its peak, the company had 20,000 employees worldwide.

In addition to being a shrewd businessman, Zale became known as a philanthropist, using his wealth to help build hospitals, fund scholarships and aid the homeless.

The Zale Foundation offered some of the first scholarships for black students to attend college in Texas, and built a 150-bed hospital in India.