One year ago: Donald G. Fisher

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Donald G. Fisher was looking for the right fit. Instead, he found a new career.

Fisher was a real estate developer who switched to retailing at age 41 after he tried to return a pair of ill-fitting jeans at a local department store. He thought the store was a mess and had a limited selection. He could do better.

Fisher and his wife, Doris, started the Gap clothing chain with a single store in San Francisco and built the company into a brand name known around the world. Fisher died a year ago of cancer at age 81.

Their concept featured a broad selection of jeans, neatly arranged by size in wall cubicles, rather than stacked haphazardly on tables.

Fisher’s news obituary appeared in The Times on Sept. 28, 2009.

-- Keith Thursby