General Robert E. Wood

General Robert E. Wood possessed an incredibly rigorous, deeply operational background in massive-scale logistics and aggressive corporate management. Having previously served as a senior quartermaster general in the U.S. Army and subsequently managing massive national distribution networks for Sears, this intense background in highly efficient supply chain execution provided the exact executive blueprint required to launch the disruptive Allstate direct-to-consumer insurance model.

General Robert E. Wood was a highly influential American corporate executive and the foundational architect behind the creation of the massive Allstate insurance empire. Serving as the legendary Chairman of Sears, Roebuck and Co. during the incredibly difficult economic environment of the Great Depression, Wood recognized an unprecedented opportunity. With car ownership rapidly expanding across America, he aggressively leveraged Sears' massive catalog distribution network to bypass traditional insurance agents, completely revolutionizing the industry by selling highly affordable auto insurance directly through the mail. Under his incredibly visionary leadership, Allstate successfully launched in 1931, rapidly scaling from a small, completely experimental mail-order subsidiary into one of the absolute largest, most globally dominant property and casualty insurers in American history.