When Dr. Jay H. Baker entered the retailing field after graduation, it wasn’t a big draw for Wharton students. But he knew it was the right place for him. He gained experience at an early age working in his parents’ millinery store in Flushing, NY. Then a career assessment test told him that retailing was one of the professions most suited to his abilities and his friendly, personable nature.

That aptitude test was right on target. More than 40 years after he began in Macy’s training program, Baker retired in 1999 as president of Kohl’s Corp., the Milwaukee-based store chain he grew to a $3.8 billion, 300-store powerhouse.

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