Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale, Capitalism with a Cause is Wednesday’s Program
 
McIngvale was born on February 11, 1951, in Starkville, Mississippi. He graduated from Bishop Lynch High School in Dallas. He and his wife have three children.
 
McIngvale is best known for his energetic, fast-paced sales pitches, typically ending with some variant of his catchphrase "saves you money!" His distinctive sales style originated from an incident that occurred early on in Gallery Furniture's history. Faced with financial difficulties, McIngvale invested all his remaining money, approximately $10,000, in a television commercial to be aired on two stations. While watching the commercial being produced, he became dissatisfied and ad-libbed a sales pitch, 'Gallery Furniture saves you money!',  speaking  rapidly because of the limited amount of time available. The commercial proved very effective, and his sales increased dramatically afterward.
 
Gallery Furniture, established in 1981, has been consistently ranked in Furniture Today’s Top 100 Furniture Retailers for some time and currently ranks as the Sales-per-Square-Foot leader for independent retailers in the United States. The store has around $200 million in sales per year. It originally sold less expensive furniture targeted toward lower-income individuals but has since expanded to include higher-end furniture.
 
Hard Work, Great Ambition
 
Jim "Mattress Mack" McIngvale has always believed in God, country, family and hard work. A tireless powerhouse, Mack is usually found standing at the front desk of the original Gallery Furniture store on North Freeway, greeting every customer and overseeing the sales activities of the store, seven days a week. He never stops moving, and his energy is infectious to all who come in contact with this Houston icon.
With only $5,000 and a dream to build the world's biggest furniture store, Mack opened Gallery Furniture under tents on the side of the freeway over 30 years ago. He has never stopped charging forward and upward. TODAY, his dream is a multi-million dollar enterprise employing over 400 American workers.
 
Houston's Philanthropist
 
While Mack's promotions are well known, his philanthropy is legendary. "We believe in 'Capitalism with a Cause'," explains Mack when asked why he gives so much to the community, schools, universities and more. "Why work so hard if you can't do something positive with what you earn?"