Mitchell Goldhar

Legend has it in his native Toronto that SmartCentres President and CEO Mitchell Goldhar paid an unsolicited visit to Sam Walton in the early 1990s, refusing to leave the prolific retailer's Arkansas office until the older man agreed to name Goldhar his exclusive developer in Canada. Though Walton declined, Goldhar's tenacity had impressed Walton enough to give him a shot. The rest is history as Goldhar soon became Walmart's de facto exclusive developer in the country, literally paving the way for Walmart as it moved into the market. Goldhar is still developing his Walmart-anchored SmartCentres, many of which he then sells to Calloway, a real estate investment trust in which he holds a 22% stake. He manages the parallel operations out of SmartCentres headquarters, known as "the Igloo," in Vaughn, Ontario.