George Mann, one of Canada’s first corporate raiders, once quipped that he graduated from the school of pool on the way to a career as a deal maker. Mr. Mann died at home in Toronto on Aug. 2 at the age of 90 after suffering from prostate and bladder cancer.
Six years after joining the business, Mr. Mann tried to take it public but the Toronto Real Estate Board shut down the idea. Instead, he bought a publicly traded trust company and merged it with the firm. “He would sit and look at the street and look at the traffic,” his daughter, Tracy Mann Brody said in an interview. “That’s why it was good to go on a Saturday because that’s when everybody got things done. He would just pick out different properties and ask us, ‘So what do you think?’”
He continued amassing an eclectic portfolio through Unicorp Canada Corp., his holding company that included a large Ontario gas utility, various banks, a book of U.S. commercial real estate and a Quebec grocery chain. Always in search of a deal, Mr. Mann excelled at identifying public companies that seemed undervalued. Some takeovers were unsuccessful, including his attempt to scoop up Dunkin’ Donuts.
Together, Mr. Mann and Mr. Leech launched one of the first truly hostile takeovers and most brutal corporate battles in Canadian history. In 1984, Mr. Mann launched a bid for Union Enterprises and its crown jewel, utility company Union Gas. The saga saw Darcy McKeough, former treasurer of Ontario – representing the old Canadian establishment – face off with members of the relatively new Jewish business community, perceived as outsiders.
He spent much of his time in Florida, where he met Carla Harrod at the art gallery where she worked. The couple married and for the next 18 years they travelled to countries such as Italy, China and Argentina. Ms. Harrod Mann often tried to persuade him to join her on the dance floor.