Charles D. Tandy

Charles David Tandy (15 May 1918 – 4 November 1978) was the chairman of the board, president, and chief executive officer of the Tandy Corporation.

Early life Tandy was the second of three children born to Carmen (née McLain) and David Lewis Tandy in Brownsville, Texas, on May 15, 1918.

In 1935 Tandy graduated from Central High School in Fort Worth, Texas.

Career Tandy's father co-owned the Hinckley-Tandy Leather Company with his friend Norton Hinckley. In 1940 he graduated from Texas Christian University. He then spent some time at the Harvard Business School before joining the US Navy for the remainder of World War II. While in the Navy he set a record for selling war bonds. While a supply officer in the Navy, he noticed sailors being taught knitting and needlepoint as part of recuperative therapy. Thinking that men would prefer leatherwork to needlework, he established a system of craft work for hospitalized service personnel. Its success led him, on leaving the Navy, to set up a mail order business, Tandycraft, that became a major part of his father's business.

In Tandy's last years his major project was the revitalization of downtown Fort Worth, his hometown, e.g., the construction of the eight-block Tandy Center.

Awards and recognition 1976: Business Executive of the Year by Texas Wesleyan University 1976: Spirit of Enterprise Award of the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce 1976: Outstanding Chief Executive Officer of the Year in Merchandising and Services Category by Financial World 1983: Texas Legend Inductee by the Texas Business Hall of Fame 1991: Academy of Achievement Sales & Marketing Hall of Fame Induction by SMEI