Canadian retail icon Harry Rosen, pictured prior to his tribute in Toronto this week, opened his first men’s wear store in the city’s Cabbagetown neighbourhood 56 years ago.
Larry Rosen was just making one of his "cornball jokes" when he referred to his father as Harry Krishna this week. But as Freud has cautioned, jokes often contain kernels of truth. In citing the well-known mantra, the younger Rosen also evoked the guru status that his famous 78-year-old dad has achieved in Canadian retail.
Proof of the esteem in which Harry Rosen, who parlayed a single men's wear shop on Toronto's Parliament Street into a luxury nationwide chain, was evident in the 500 or so well-wishers who thronged to the city's Four Seasons Hotel on Wednesday night for the Hats Off to Harry event.
Organized by Larry, who is now chairman and CEO of Harry Rosen Inc., as a tribute to the "the man who taught me everything I know," the soirée was also a fundraiser to endow the Harry Rosen Diabetes Chair in Stem Cell Research at the McEwen Centre for Regenerative Medicine within Toronto's University Health Network. The $1.8-million goal was reportedly exceeded by evening's end. Among the donors were some of the fashion industry's biggest names.
Hugo Boss CEO Claus Dietrich Lahrs flew in from Germany, while Zegna scion Benedetta Zegna and Giorgio Canali of Canali came from Italy. Brunello Cucinelli president Massimo Caronna made the trip from New York.
"I've built the business on relationships," Harry said in an interview this week. "Relationships that have lasted over a number of years."
At one point in the tribute, the guest of honour took to the podium to thank his well wishers, but not before besting singer Matt Dusk in an impromptu duet. "I sing better than you," Harry said.
Maybe. But his voice wasn't the loudest. It belonged instead to the attendees, who stood and rapturously toasted his name.
Quotes from the night:
"[Harry's stores]are beautifully styled. The visual merchandising is extraordinary. I walk in, and I want to buy everything." Massimo Caronna, president of Brunello Cucinelli
"[Harry]is a successful businessman, but he does it with a soft touch. He's able to combine the best of both worlds - the business side and the human side." Benedetta Zegna