Harry Sugar*
Class of 1957
- President Alsco, Inc.
I never would have made it without help from others. That's something I will never forget, and I will do my best to return the favor.
Harry Sugar immigrated to the United States from Europe when he was two. In 1940, he borrowed $300 to start manufacturing redwood storm windows. Five years later, he incorporated his business as Alsco, Inc., which was headquartered in Akron, Ohio.
Sugar soon expanded his operations to Italy, where there was a need for windows, doorframes, and irrigation pipes as a part the country's rehabilitation program. He became the world's largest manufacturer of all-aluminum windows and doors, building a global multimillion-dollar business with plants in the United States, Canada, and Italy.
In 1955, the Italian government gave Sugar its Star of Solidarity Award for creating factory jobs in southern Italy.