UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Although he was born into a retail family and ran businesses for about two decades, Fred Hurvitz found his greatest reward in teaching hundreds of students the ins and outs of retail, marketing and business.
“I don't like to teach something on a theoretical basis,” said Hurvitz, marketing instructor and Kohl’s Professor of Practice for Retail Studies, who retired at the end of 2022. “I like to give my students examples and, if I've lived some of those examples, I think they understand it and appreciate it better.”
His teaching career began in the late 1970s as a Smeal adjunct professor carrying a full class load before starting a full-time faculty position in 1988.
Along the way, he estimated that between 50,000 and 60,000 students passed through his courses over the 45 years that he taught. “I am proud of the fact that I taught so many different students,” he said.
He also helped develop and then run the Jacobs Fellows program for exceptional seniors. The capstone event was taking them to the annual National Retail Federation’s Big Show each year in New York City to present case studies, network and learn more about the industry.
“I believe the most rewarding part of teaching is to see some of the students I have taught go on to develop remarkable careers,” Hurvitz noted.
“Fred is probably one of the nicest guys you’d ever want to meet,” said Robert Novack, associate professor of supply chain management.
“He has a great sense of humor. He’d stop by my office and we’d always have a chat and a good laugh over something,” Novack added. “He has a great heart and has a passion for teaching his students, which I respect a lot.”
Deep retail roots
Hurvitz’s father started Hur’s Men’s Shop in State College the year his son was born, so Hurvitz grew up working there after school and during the summer. The first store was centrally located on College Avenue, right across from Old Main.
After Hurvitz earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Penn State in 1969, he started his MBA at SUNY Buffalo before deciding to take a job with Price Waterhouse in New York City.
But, two days before he was supposed to start, his father had emergency cancer surgery and asked his son to take over the family retail and apartment building businesses. Within a year, his father passed away and Hurvitz — then about 23 — remained in State College where he resumed his MBA at Penn State in 1983 while working full time.
It wasn’t long before Hurvitz was approached by his golf buddy and Penn State Business Department chair, H. Leigh “Buck” Matthews. He wanted to know if Hurvitz would be interested in teaching a retailing course. He was.
The next department chair, Pete Benton, asked if he wanted to teach more — specifically a channels of distribution course and then intro to marketing. He did. By the late 1970s, he was an adjunct professor with a full course load.
“I was doing all this while I had the businesses,” Hurvitz recalled. “I didn’t consider that my profession was going to be teaching.”
Over the years, he ran a number of retail operations, including three men’s clothing stores, a newsstand/smoke shop, a pants and tops shop, and a men's and women’s clothing store in Lewistown. Even his wife, Jan, started a shop called Spirit, a women’s/junior’s shop that specialized in dance and aerobic clothing.
He later moved out of retailing and into manufacturing. A piezo ceramic manufacturing company was the first; it was bought by a customer after a few years. Then, he started an injection-molded plastics company. In 1989 his partner bought him out so Hurvitz could focus solely on teaching.
Practical experience
Over the years, his connections with retail organizations, and observations of the marketplace, have shown Hurvitz how the business has shifted and how new fields, like retail analytics, have changed the industry.
“We flew by the seat of our pants way back when I started out, but there's no reason to do that now,” he said, noting that good data can really help drive retail businesses toward success. “Retailing is just ever-changing. When I think about who the major retailers were when I started out — Sears, Kmart — they're practically not here at all. My students don’t even know who Woolworth’s was. So, the field is exciting that way.”
Jon Grosso, who earned a bachelor’s degree in business management from Penn State in 1989, is executive vice president and director of store operations for Kohl’s. He met Hurvitz about 15 years ago when he began serving on Smeal’s Board of Visitors and wanted to connect with a retail professor to get Kohl’s retail message out to students.
“Our similar goal was how do you give students an authentic take and approach to Retail 101 in the real world,” said Grosso, who often talked to Hurvitz’s classes about Kohl’s and the industry. “I also wanted to use these conversations as a recruiting tool and break down some of the stereotypes about retail because it has changed and evolved so much.”
Hurvitz’s dedication to the field led him to be named the Kohl’s Professor of Practice for Retail Studies.
“You only have to talk to Fred for two minutes and what comes out right away is the authenticity,” Grosso said. “It was a very easy decision.”
Hans Baumgartner, Smeal Chair Professor of Marketing and former Marketing Department chair, remembered tapping Hurvitz to teach a variety of classes.
“Fred’s teaching specialties were retailing and services marketing, but he was a jack of all trades and could teach almost any course,” he said. “For example, when we had to find somebody at the last minute to teach a course, Fred was always willing to help out. His practical experience in retailing and his extensive contacts in the retailing industry were invaluable to generations of students who wanted to build a career in retailing.”
Plus, Hurvitz is well liked, has many friends, and has been a key community leader over the years, said Richard Bard, Hurvitz’s friend of five decades and a former chair of the Smeal Board of Visitors.
“He is almost unique today in having spent his youth, career and married life in the same community,” said Bard, founder and chief executive officer of Bard Capital Group LLC, a private equity investment company with offices in Colorado. “In that role, he’s run a variety of retail and other businesses.”
“Marketing and retailing are ever-changing disciplines, impacted by social media and technology. Having a professor who is ‘current’ and also has real experience in retail has been a unique value to this curricula at Smeal,” added Bard.
His legacy
Among the many students who credit Hurvitz with helping their retail careers is Kara (Benson) Harvey, director of warehouse operations for ALDI Inc., Center Valley Division, who took two retail classes with Hurvitz.
“He was very passionate about retailing. It was great to get his real-life experience and knowledge through class,” said Harvey, who graduated with a bachelor’s degree in marketing in 1993. She celebrates 30 years with ALDI in 2023 and has been a frequent visitor of Hurvitz’s classes over the years. “I was able to use the buying information that Fred shared in class in my role as director of purchasing.”
Robin Stevens, director of Wall Street initiatives in the Department of Finance, was instrumental in having Hurvitz named the Kohl’s Professor of Practice for Retail Studies.
“Fred is a great guy who flies mostly under the radar but deserves to be recognized and rewarded for his contribution to the college and its reputation among employers and students,” Stevens said. “He was so honored by the Kohl’s award. It meant the world to him to be respected among his peers. He loved teaching and helping to inspire young students.”
Plus, his close relationships with a number of retailers, including Kohl’s, Dick’s Sporting Goods and Macy’s, mean a lot to serving the students of Smeal, she added.
“He has developed lifelong friendships with some of the recruiters, which is a testament to his commitment and how valued he is among employers,” Stevens said. “He knows his students well, he inspires them to want to work for these companies, and he helps them prepare for internships and encourages them along the way. This kind of influence is very, very important to employers as they seek to hire the best and brightest. And they can rely on Fred to train them appropriately.”
Current Marketing Department Chair Meg Meloy lauded Hurvitz as an instrumental part of the Smeal faculty for decades. “His work to introduce new programs that elevated the retail offerings in the department influenced a generation (or two) of students,” she said.
She praised Hurvitz’s role in developing and running the Jacobs Fellows program, named after Melvin Jacobs, a graduate of Penn State and former chairman and CEO of Saks Fifth Avenue.
In a video message honoring Hurvitz at his retirement party, Meloy spoke of how helpful he always was, even when she was a Cornell graduate student in the 1990s. She stated that Hurvitz allowed her to talk with students in his BA 303 Marketing class to gather insights about their decision-making processes.
“That theme of continuing to gather insights in your classroom carried through to future generations of Smeal graduate students as well,” she noted. “You supported the educational mission of all Smeal students.”
She added, “You have been a really critical part of the faculty and you will be missed. Enjoy your well-deserved retirement.”
What’s next
Hurvitz said he’s looking forward to playing golf three or four days a week but wouldn't turn down a chance to be an expert witness for national civil cases centered on retailing.
His first case happened years ago when an 85-year-old woman was injured in a customer stampede to get Cabbage Patch Dolls during an after-Thanksgiving sale at Kmart. He testified for the plaintiff about how other retailers safely managed customer flow during sales of in-demand products. The woman won her case.
“I won’t take a case if I don’t believe in the cause,” he said.