Hall of Fame Induction Year
2008
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Inductee Biography
A high school dropout, Douglas J. Von Allmen was not expected to acquire more than 50 different businesses during his career.Few could have predicted he would return to high school, graduate from college, and become a financial officer in the insurance industry before striking out on his own in 1978. With savings of $30,000, he started his life as an entrepreneur. He acquired several companies and struggled to make them successful. Von Allmen's biggest successes include Temple, Inc., Sunsations Sunglass Company, and Beauty Alliance. Sold in 1997, Temple, Inc., was a Texas-based distributor of electrical equipment with sales of $50 million. In 1990, he bought Sunsations Sunglass Company, a chain of 70 sunglass stores. He sold it in 1995 after building the chain to 350 stores. Beauty Alliance was the largest privately owned professional beauty supply distributor in the country, with distribution channels in 24 states and sales of $500 million. In 2007, Von Allmen sold the successful company to L'Oréal. Currently, he manages more than $1.5 billion in investments through a highly diversified investment fund by following proven strategies used over the past five years to realize annual returns of 25 percent.
Digital Collection
Huizenga College of Business and Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame
Disciplines
Entrepreneurial and Small Business Operations
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