Early Life
John Catsimatidis was born on the Greek island of Nisyros on September 7, 1948. His family emigrated to New York City when he was six months old, settling in Harlem. His father worked as a busboy and his mother was a homemaker. Catsimatidis graduated from Brooklyn Technical High School and studied electrical engineering at New York University, but dropped out to focus on his grocery business.
Rise to Success
Catsimatidis's entrepreneurial journey began in the grocery business. He opened his first Red Apple store in Manhattan in 1971. By the time he was 25, he had established ten Red Apple supermarkets. Over the decades, he expanded his holdings to include real estate, oil refining through United Refining Company, and radio broadcasting with WABC. His business model emphasized rapid inventory turnover and reinvestment to fuel his expansion.
Key Business Strategies
Catsimatidis is the Chairman and CEO of Red Apple Group, a conglomerate that owns and operates assets in the energy, real estate, finance, insurance, and supermarket industries. Key strategies include acquiring distressed assets, vertical integration, and a focus on urban real estate. His company expanded into Florida real estate, leveraging population and income inflows in the Sun Belt. Red Apple Group's revenue was $8 billion as of 2025.
Philanthropy
Catsimatidis is involved in various philanthropic activities. He has supported the John Catsimatidis Scholarship Fund at New York University Stern School of Business, which awards scholarships annually. He also supports organizations like the Police Athletic League, the Kidney Foundation, the Alzheimer's Foundation, and the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation.