Walter A. Haas Jr.

Walter A. Haas Jr. (January 24, 1916 – September 20, 1995) was a president and CEO (1958–1976) and chairman (1970–1981) of Levi Strauss & Co, succeeding his father Walter A. Haas (1889–1979). He led the company in its growth from a regional manufacturer and wholesaler of work clothes to one of the world’s leading apparel companies. In 1953, together with his wife, Evelyn, he founded the Evelyn and Walter Haas Jr. Fund, a private family foundation based in San Francisco, California.

Early life and education

Haas was born to a Jewish family in San Francisco, the son of Elise (née Stern) and Walter A. Haas. His mother was the daughter of Sigmund Stern (the nephew of Levi Strauss and the son of David Stern); and Rosalie (née Meyer) Stern (the daughter of Harriet Newmark Meyer and Marc Eugene Meyer; and the granddaughter of rabbi Joseph Newmark). Haas graduated from the University of California, Berkeley in 1937. His father was a prominent supporter of the university; the Haas School of Business was named in his honor. Haas attended the Harvard Business School and earned an MBA in 1939.

Oakland Athletics

Haas was the owner of the Oakland Athletics baseball club, acquiring the team from Charles O. Finley in August 1980 for less than $13 million. The acquisition was to prevent the team from moving, as Finley had wanted to sell to industrialist Marvin Davis, who planned to move the team to Denver. Under Haas' ownership, the Athletics won five American League West Division titles (the first in 1981 and the last in 1992, advancing to three consecutive World Series between 1988 and 1990, defeating the cross-bay rival San Francisco Giants in 1989 in a sweep marred only by the infamous Loma Prieta earthquake).

Philanthropy

Haas sought to strengthen Levi Strauss & Co.’s position as a socially responsible international corporation. During the 1950s, Haas, along with his brother, Peter E. Haas, oversaw racial integration of the company’s plants. He also led the creation of Community Involvement Teams for Levi Strauss & Co. employees. Haas served on the boards of the Ford Foundation and the National Park Foundation while leading Levi Strauss & Co. He was also involved in other nonprofit institutions such as the Hunter’s Point Boys’ Club and the San Francisco Chronicle’s Season of Sharing Fund.

Together with his wife, Haas established the Evelyn and Walter Haas Jr. Fund in 1953 as a private family foundation. As its mission statement describes, the Fund “seeks to fulfill (its) founders’ vision of a just and caring society that provides fundamental rights and opportunities so that all people can live, work and raise their families with dignity.” Of his family’s philanthropy, Haas used to say, "It's in the genes."

Personal life

In 1940, Haas married Evelyn Danzig Haas; they had three children: Robert D. Haas, former chairman and CEO of Levi Strauss & Co. who is married to Colleen Gershon Haas; philanthropist Betsy Haas Eisenhardt who is married to Roy Eisenhardt; and Walter J. Haas, co-chairman of the Evelyn and Walter Haas Jr. Fund and former chairman and CEO of the Oakland Athletics, who is married to Julie Salles Haas. Haas died at age 79 from prostate cancer at his San Francisco residence. Funeral services were held at Congregation Emanu-El in San Francisco.