Harry Gilham went to a bank to apply for a loan to start his own lighting business in 1960. The bank denied his loan, telling him that he didn’t have enough experience.
He proved them wrong.
Gilham, emptying his life savings and borrowing money from a friend, turned his business plan into a decades-long entrepreneurship, founding Georgia Lighting later that year and World Imports Co. in 1968.
“He knew how to do what was required to make a business work,” sister-in-law Susan Mason said. “He built his business with hard work, determination, grit and a strong will.”
Gilham was named the Lighting Person of the Year by the American Lighting Association in 1979 and received the Entrepreneurship Award from Emory University’s business school in 2002.
But Gilham wasn’t all about business, his family said. He valued relationships, which he used as strong foundations for his companies. It was important to him to be able to connect with people, and he never shied away from the opportunity to speak to a stranger, son-in-law Todd McGarrity said.
“He wanted to develop relationships with everyone,” McGarrity said. “He wanted to meet people and know about people, and I think that was one of the major strengths in his business.”
Harry Leonidas Gilham Jr. of Atlanta died Sunday of complications from a heart attack at Piedmont Hospital. He was 84. A memorial service is scheduled for 11 a.m. Thursday at the Cathedral of St. Philip in Atlanta. H.M. Patterson & Son, Spring Hill Chapel was in charge of cremation arrangements.
Gilham graduated with a bachelor of business administration degree from Emory in 1951 before serving as an officer in the U.S. Navy from 1953 to 1955. Upon his return, he moved to Dalton to begin work in a lighting warehouse, where he learned the fundamentals of the business.
After four years in Dalton, he moved back to Atlanta to begin Georgia Lighting. Eight years later he started World Imports Co., serving as president of both companies until his retirement in 2001. During his 41 years in business, he pioneered the idea of using a showroom to allow consumers to see how lights would look in an actual home, longtime friend Bill Smith said.
“He initiated showroom-type marketing,” he said. “He actually had products hanging in a home setting, showing how it would look with furniture.”
Gilham was a hard worker and dedicated businessman, but he made sure that there was balance between work and family, McGarrity said.
“As hard as he worked, he realized sometimes you have to step back,” he said. “When it came to his family, he was off the clock. He was the epitome of a gentleman, and I consider him one of the greatest men in Atlanta.”
Gilham is survived by his wife of 48 years, Caroline Mason Gilham of Atlanta; two daughters, Anna Gilham McGarrity and Jean Gilham Kirby, both of Atlanta; and five grandchildren.
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