A refugee of Nazi Germany, Vernon built her quirky mail-order operation into a $300 million enterprise back when women weren’t supposed to run businesses.
“Lillian Vernon, who created a sprawling catalog business that specialized in personalized gifts and ingenious gadgets and made her an American household name, died on Monday in Manhattan. She was 88. Her death was confirmed by her son Fred P. Hochberg, the president and chairman of the Export-Import Bank of the United States.”
