Jim McCann Biography

Jim McCann likes to make things grow. Just as he built an international business from a single Manhattan flower shop, McCann, CEO of 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, has helped expand the definition of retailing in just a decade.

Recognizing the enormous potential in providing on-the-go consumers with quality, gift-giving opportunities, McCann pushed traditional boundaries to create not just one, but several access channels. Today, 1-800-FLOWERS.COM customers can send a wide variety of floral products and other thoughtful gifts around the block or around the world by clicking a mouse on a personal computer, walking into one of its stores, or by dialing 1-800-FLOWERS.

McCann acquired the 1-800-FLOWERS number in 1986 after successfully building his own chain of 14 flower shops in the New York metropolitan area. Using a thorough understanding of his customer base and market, he focused on creating a reliable brand name and instilling a sense of trust and convenience in an industry that had previously had no leader. As his business grew, McCann pioneered its entry into other retail access channels—going online in 1992. Today, 1-800-FLOWERS.COM has one of the best-known websites (1-800-FLOWERS.COM) and maintains strategic online relationships with a number of online services, including America Online, Microsoft Network (MSN), Yahoo!, and Google.

McCann attributes much of his success to the training he received in his first job—as a social worker. As an administrator at St. John’s Home for Boys in Rockaway, New York, McCann recalls, he had to help underprivileged teenagers learn how to overcome the challenges of poverty, drugs and despair. His experiences greatly influenced the open management style he uses today.

McCann’s humanitarian efforts, his entrepreneurial acumen and his retail vision have been widely recognized in the business community. Among his many honors are Entrepreneur of the Year, Retailer of the Year, Advocate of the Year, and Direct Marketer of the Year. He has also been named one of the Top Business 100 in Irish America Magazine.

Active in numerous business and community organizations, McCann is on the national boards of directors of Gateway 2000, OfficeMax, the National Retail Federation, The Boyds Collection, Willis Group Holdings Limited and GTECH Holdings Corporation, as well as the boards of Hofstra University and Winthrop-University Hospital. He also supports programs for the developmentally disabled. McCann is the author of Stop and Sell the Roses and the co-author of Celebrations: A Joyous Guide to Holidays from Past to Present, as well as A Year Full of Flowers.

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