THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, May 14, 1996 TAG: 9605140389
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: D1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY LON WAGNER, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 55 lines
Alexander Paul Kotarides went about life as unassuming and as basic as his business's main product: bread.
The president and chief executive officer of Mary Jane Bakery/Kotarides Baking Co., Kotarides died Monday at Depaul Medical Center. He was 76.
Kotarides' grandfather started the baking business 94 years ago. But it was Kotarides - the third generation of the family to run the bakery - who took it from a local business to become one of the few independent bakeries still operating on the East Coast.
``He's the one who spearheaded its success,'' said Arthur Polizos, of the Polizos Agency, who handled Mary Jane's advertizing. ``He's the guy who took it to a different level.''
Mary Jane Bakery employs 450. Pictures of the company's icon, a little girl named Mary Jane, became a slice of Americana in Virginia and parts of the East Coast.
Kotarides was among the first in this region to boost the company's brand image through television advertising. In the 1950s, he also distinguished Mary Jane's products with what now seems like a simple marketing maneuver but at the time was unusual: The company bagged its breads in bright yellow plastic wrap.
The company's breads have held their own on grocery store shelves against an onslaught of brands put out by national conglomerates.
The Mary Jane Bakery was producing low-calorie, high-fiber bread 20 years ago, before it became common in the industry. The company's brands include Golden Grain and Natural Grain breads.
Kotarides quietly turned the company into a regional player without much fanfare. That's similar to the way he contributed to local charities.
Without asking for any publicity, Kotarides compiled a record of contributing to Children's Hospital of The King's Daughters, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, DePaul Medical Center, the Salvation Army, Union Mission, the NAACP, Annunciation Greek Orthodox Cathedral and others.
``He was very good to the sisters here at DePaul,'' said Nancy Coberly, president of DePaul Health Foundation. ``He didn't ask for a lot of recognition or publicity ever.''
Just Monday morning, in fact, a donated load of Mary Jane baked goods arrived at DePaul for a charity golf tournament to be held today, Coberly said. ILLUSTRATION: Alexander Paul Kotarides
KEYWORDS: DEATH OBITUARY by CNB