BUSINESS HALL OF FAME INDUCTION SLATED

CHICAGO, Ill. -- Some big names in the business world including Richard Warren Sears, Sam Moore Walton and Steven P. Jobs will be inducted into the National Business Hall of Fame this month.

Seven business leaders have been selected by Fortune magazine to receive the Academy Award of Business during the Junior Achievement National Business Hall of Fame Conference in Seattle, Wash., Thursday.

"The laureates in the Hall of Fame represent America's true mavericks," said James B. Hayes, Fortune publisher and Junior Achievement national chairman. "These are people who have blazed the trails of innovation and leadership in the U.S. and around the world.

"Their achievements continue to transcend the boundaries of their respective industries to touch the lives of individuals and enhance the stature of our nation."

The four living inductees are Walton, founder of Wal-Mart; Jobs, co-founder of Apple Computers; William McGowan, MCI founder; and Max DePree, retired CEO of Herman Miller Inc.

Sears, founder of Sears, Roebuck and Co., Julius Rosenwald of Sears and C.J. Walker, founder of Walker Manufacturing, will be posthumously honored.

The seven will join 134 business men and women already inducted into the National Business Hall of Fame, which is housed in Chicago.

Following is a capsule look at the inductees:

Sears: Richard Warren Sears purchased a shipment of watches from a merchant in 1886. He sold the merchandise for a reasonable profit. By 1888, Sears had established a catalog business at Chicago. Although catalog sales were nothing new at that time, Sears revolutionized the practice. Sears sold his stake in the company in 1908 for $10 million. The "P.T. Barnum of the catalogue industry" died in 1914.

Walton: Sam Moore Walton started his retailing career in Newport, Ark., when he was 44 years old.

Newport was where the first Wal-Mart opened. Unfortunately, Walton had to sell the successful store to the son of his landlord, who refused to renew Walton's lease. Walton regrouped in Bentonville, Ark., and quickly built a network of Wal-Mart stores. Walton, now 74, has turned Wal-Mart into the nation's most profitable retailer.

Jobs: the name of Steven Jobs has become synonymous with personal computers. In 1977, Jobs and his partner, Stephen G. Wozniak, launched the personal computer revolution from a garage in Cupertino, Calif. Through sheer determination and a belief in the power of computers, Jobs was able to parlay a $1,300 investment into a $2.7 million operation within a year. Apple Computer has since become a dominant force in the global computer markets.

Walker: Sarah Breedlove Walker became the country's fist black millionaire. Walker made her fortune from a line of hair-care products she devised after she experienced hair loss from her job as a washerwoman. The basic formula for the product came to her in a dream, she said. Starting with $1.50 in Denver, the "Walker System" soon grew into a lucrative business. She later moved Walker Manufacturing Co. to Indianapolis. She died in 1919 in New York City.

DePree: Max DePree started work at Herman Miller Co. as a janitor while he was still in high school in the 1940s. Forty years later, DePree had become the company's chief executive officer. During his first five years as CEO, he guided the furniture maker to a 114 percent increase in sales. A lot of Herman Miller's success is attributed to DePree's management style, which gives every employee a stake in the company. DePree retired as CEO in 1987.

Rosenwald: Julius Rosenwald became Richard Warren Sears' business partner in 1895. Rosenwald, a small, clothing manufacturer, pulled the business from the brink of financial disaster after Sears impulsively advertised some suits he didn't have. After Sears sold out in 1988, Rosenwald took the company public. He later turned the company over to Gen. Robert E. Wood and spent the rest of his life as a philanthropist. Rosenwald died in 1932.

McGowan: William McGowan joined forces with a friend in 1968 to start a microwave radio link for truck drivers traveling between Chicago and St. Louis. During the 1970s, McGowan Microwave Communications Inc. grew into a profitable entity that challenged AT&T's dominance of long-distance communications. With the eventual restructuring of the industry, MCI increased its share of the market, making the nation's No. 2 long-distance carrier a multibillion-dollar company.