The Center for Creative Leadership, founded in 1970, is a wealth of Greensboro history. First of all, it was started by the family that created Vicks VapoRub, the Richardsons. On the middle shelf on the right is a gold jar of the salve, the billionth, yes billionth, jar. This product was selling well, even during the Great Depression. If you see the monitor in the bottom center of the photo, there is a very informative presentation about the history of the Richardson family, the history of the Vicks VapoRub product, and how that ties into the founding of the Center for Creative Leadership (CCL).
Lunsford Richardson (1854- 1919) is the pharmacist who created a salve to relieve symptoms of a common cold. The menthol that went into the salve was a drug from Japan. Lunsford's son, Henry Smith Richardson Sr. (1885- 1972), worked in the family business. As a quote in the presentation explains, H. Smith Richardson "began researching what separates a successful organization from one that fails. He devoted his time to developing ways to identify, evaluate, train and advance future leaders, and established the Smith Richardson Foundation in 1935." H. Smith Richardson Jr. (1920- 1999) continued the work of his father and grandfather. Smith Richardson Jr. "was instrumental in creating the Center for Creative Leadership, an institute that trains executives, military officers and politicians in business and government. Mr. Richardson was chairman of the center's board from 1972 until 1994.*
The CCL, a global leader in leadership training, is located right here, between Bur-Mil Park/Owl's Roost and Hamburg Mill Road on North Battleground (Highway 220). Just think, it all has its roots in the work of the pharmacist who created the Vicks products. In the short hour we were at CCL, it was fascinating to hear the conversations related to the Richardson families companies and products. One person, who seemed to be very knowledgeable, talked about a garden that they had growing plants that could be used for medicinal purposes. If it has not been done already, getting oral histories of people who have first-hand information about the Vicks factory and some of the stories that only people who worked at the factory would know. As for the CCL, they have many books about leadership and much of the work they are doing today.
*Reference and more information in New York Times article from 1999. See HERE.
From what I know of the product, they got it right.
Posted by: William Kendall | Tuesday, August 16, 2022 at 08:49 PM