John Catsimatidis Sr., Developer of the Residences at 400 Central, Hosts Book Signing Event for “How Far Do You Want to Go? Lessons from a Common-Sense Billionaire”
Owner of Real Estate, Media, Grocery, Sports and Energy Companies tells his life’s story of hurdles and triumphs in Wall Street Journal best-selling book
Billionaire entrepreneur John Catsimatidis Sr., developer of the Residences at 400 Central in St. Petersburg – anticipated to be the tallest condominium building on the Gulf Coast, will host a book signing event this June 3 in the St. Petersburg Museum of History for his autobiography How Far Do You Want to Go?: Lessons from a Common-Sense Billionaire, a detailed account of Catsimatidis’ incredible life story.
The autobiography was immediately ranked as a Wall Street Journal and Amazon best-selling book.
Prior to the 6 p.m. book signing event, Catsimatidis will be meeting separately with students from the University of South Florida’s Kate Tiedemann School of Business and Finance and with aspiring and minority entrepreneurs within the St. Petersburg community.
In addition to constructing the Residences 400 Central, Catsimatidis has deep family ties to the St. Petersburg community, and has supported a number important of community initiatives, including artistic elements of the St. Pete Pier, the Poynter Foundation, the Greek and Russian Orthodox Church, the St. Petersburg Museum of History, the Holocaust Museum, the Dali Museum, and Florida CraftArts.
In How Far Do You Want to Go? Catsimatidis shares his dynamic story, from his beginnings in the grocery business to entering the political arena, including a New York City mayoral campaign.
“The American dream doesn’t come with an instruction manual—or even a sign to let you know when you’ve arrived at the finish line,” Catsimatidis said. “I wrote How Far Do You Want to Go? to help others with an entrepreneurial spirit achieve success.”
Catsimatidis was born on the small Greek island of Nisyros and immigrated to the United States with his family when he was an infant. Raised in Harlem, Catsimatidis became a true New Yorker. He went to school by day and worked in a small grocery store by night to help pay for college tuition. Catsimatidis then shifted to buying and building grocery stores.
By his 25th birthday, he was already a success, with 10 Red Apple Supermarkets along Broadway Avenue on Manhattan’s Upper Westside.
Catsimatidis loves being an American with a passion of a first-generation immigrant – because he knows this country offers more opportunities to succeed than any other place. He is also clear-eyed about major choices in life. While studying electrical engineering in college, as his parents wanted him to do, he was only eight credits shy of his college degree. But he saw starting electrical engineers earning about $130 per week. Meanwhile, he was already making $1,000 a week in partnership with his uncle in the grocery store. So, he left school, had to stand up to his parents, and knew that if he failed, he’d never hear the end of it.
A born businessman, Catsimatidis knows the importance of business basics, such as marketing: “…The store needed marketing,” he wrote of the grocery, “which is just another word for communicating with the public. We had to tell the people what we were selling and why it was good. Obvious, right? We also had to communicate with the employees if we wanted them to be on the same page as we were. If we did both those things, I knew the store would be a success.”
Catsimatidis likes people and is interested in all kinds of people — and what makes them tick. He continually thinks “what can we do together? We must be able to do something that will make money or that will make a difference.” And he tries to make it fun.
Flash forward to 1993. After supporting George H.W. Bush for reelection, Catsimatidis and his wife are having after-dinner drinks in the Oval Office with Bill and Hillary Clinton, and his book recounts how he found Hillary incredibly smart, and Bill incredibly charming.
Today, that grocery business has grown to become the Red Apple Group, a conglomerate with more than 10,000 employees and interests in energy, real estate, aviation, baseball, entertainment and media, including the iconic radio station WABC, where John hosts leading figures in government, politics, business, and economics.
The Residences at 400 Central is now under construction in downtown St. Petersburg and is attracting brisk sales from buyers across the country. Those sales include an expansive, 4,237 square-foot penthouse that recently sold for $5.23 million. When complete, the 46-story building is anticipated to become the tallest residential building on the west coast of Florida and include 301 luxury condominium homes, plus ground-floor retail and restaurants, as well as Class A office space.
Catsimatidis’ contacts in politics and business have made his nationally syndicated radio shows a resounding success, including the Sunday morning radio show The Cats Roundtable and his 5pm weekday show, Cats & Cosby. Now, he offers readers a glimpse into the wisdom he’s gained—and the excitement he has for what the future holds in store.
A firm believer in giving back to the community, Catsimatidis has been a strong supporter of the Police Athletic League for nearly 30 years. He serves on the board of Columbia Presbyterian Hospital, the Hellenic Times Scholarship Fund as well as a variety of volunteer positions in the Greek Orthodox Church.
How Far Do You Want to Go?: Lessons from a Common-Sense Billionaire is available on Amazon, the 77 WABC Store and anywhere else quality books are sold.
Publisher: Matt Holt Books, an imprint of BenBella Books Inc.
Distributed by: Penguin Random House
Publication Date: February 28, 2023
ISBN: 9781637743430
