Entrepreneur
Founding Member“Entrepreneurship makes the world grow and prosper.” Sam Hollis, a Past President and founding member of the Society of Entrepreneurs, understands the fundamentals – ingenuity, determination, hard work, and integrity – and he has embodied them throughout his successful career, as well as through his dedication to a long and varied list of civic involvements. After serving as an officer in the Navy, Sam started his business career in the family appliance business. He then served as the Executive Assistant to the Mayor of Memphis from 1958-60. He then moved on to the Galbreath Company, where he immersed himself in the world of real estate mortgage. In 1968, he joined the Plough Company, where he served until 1970, when he became President of the Federal Compress and Warehouse Company. In 1983, he became majority shareholder of Federal Compress and served as Chairman of the Board until his retirement in 1998. For many years, he was on the board of First Tennessee National Corporation.
Numerous civic commitments have long been a part of Sam’s career and commitment to entrepreneurship. He has served as President of the National Cotton Council, President of the Cotton Warehouse Association, President of the Memphis Chamber of Commerce, Chairman of the Memphis Food Bank, the Tennessee Business Roundtable, Partners in Public Education, and the Boys and Girls Club. He has also served on the boards of United Way of Greater Memphis and Washington and Lee University.
Federal Compress & Warehouse – cotton warehousing
L.P. Brown – bagging and ties for cotton
1886
Founding member
“Entrepreneurship makes the world grow and prosper. Our entrepreneurship in America is unique because it is class blind, color blind, gender blind, and religion blind.”
