Sometimes, all it takes is one great idea to become rich and famous. For Robert Abplanalp, that idea was a simple upgrade to the standard aerosol valve—an innovation that made him a multi-millionaire. This Bronx native went from a struggling mechanic to one of America’s wealthiest entrepreneurs and a close friend of a U.S. president. Read on to discover his incredible story of success, brought to you by bronxski.com.
Happy Childhood
Robert Henry Abplanalp was born in the Bronx in 1922 to Swiss immigrants, Hans and Marie Abplanalp. His mother was a homemaker, while his father worked as a mechanic, maintaining bakery trucks. From a young age, Robert spent countless hours with his father in their basement workshop. He later recalled learning to operate a lathe at just seven years old. When they weren’t working, father and son often relaxed in Long Island Sound, where they both loved to fish. Abplanalp always remembered this time with a special fondness, cherishing a childhood filled with love, care, and family warmth. It was on one of these fishing trips that his mechanical ingenuity first showed itself: he devised a method to quickly gather large numbers of bait crabs for his father, easily outperforming the other kids.
An Early Passion for Mechanics
After graduating from Fordham Prep in the Bronx, Robert enrolled in an engineering program at Villanova University. However, after just a couple of years, he decided to leave school and open his own machine shop. He was eager to start making money on his own and felt he already knew everything the university was teaching him. But his ambitious plans were put on hold by the war. From 1943 to 1946, he served in the U.S. military in Europe, specifically in a railway battalion stationed in France. After the war, Robert returned to his business, but the first few post-war years were a struggle.
Some weeks, he earned as little as $10, and his shop racked up $10,000 in debt. Despite the hardship, Robert never gave up, continuing to produce parts for a wide range of industrial equipment.
An Aerosol Revolution
Everything changed after a client, John Bessler, visited Robert with a problem. He brought in several malfunctioning aerosol valves that were hindering sales for a crucial product line. At the time, aerosol valves were poor quality: they often leaked, rusted quickly, and were far too expensive to produce.
Intrigued by the challenge, Abplanalp spent several months working on a solution with Bessler’s friend, Fred Lodes, who helped him understand the technology of aerosol cans. Robert stayed up late, conducting countless experiments and testing different theories and combinations. Eventually, Abplanalp developed a new type of valve consisting of seven parts made from metal, plastic, and rubber. This design was easy to mass-produce, and the cost dropped from 15 cents to just 2.5 cents apiece.
After receiving a patent, Abplanalp, Bessler, and Lodes founded the Precision Valve Corporation in September 1949. The company was an instant success, with products selling lightning-fast and generating huge profits in its first year. In 1962, Robert bought out his partners. The New York Times, reflecting on Abplanalp’s early career, would later call him the “Henry Ford of the packaging industry.”
From Rags to Riches
By 1971, the company was bringing in an annual revenue of $50 million, and Abplanalp’s personal fortune was estimated at $100 million.
When the U.S. federal government began phasing out fluorocarbon propellants in the 1970s due to environmental concerns, Abplanalp quickly developed a new spray technology that used liquefied natural gas as a propellant and water as a solvent. His Yonkers-based company grew into a global empire with plants and offices in 20 countries, producing 4 billion valves annually. Precision Valve manufactured valves for major clients like Pepsi and NASA.
In 1971, Robert Abplanalp was honored with the Horatio Alger Award, given to individuals who have achieved great success despite overcoming adversity.
“I’m an example of what is possible only in America,” he said in 1999. “I thank God every day for the luck I have had. It is truly unbelievable luck. Approximately 75 percent of my success is luck.”
Abplanalp also received an honorary doctorate from Villanova University and was named “Man of the Year” from the Education Foundation. Additionally, he served on the boards of both Fordham Prep and Manhattan College.
“The most important thing is self-respect,” Abplanalp once said. “It doesn’t matter what other people think of you. The only thing that matters is what you think of yourself.”
A Political Friendship
Abplanalp supported Richard Nixon’s presidential campaign as early as 1960. When they first met in 1963, he told Nixon directly that he considered his defeat unfair. At the time, Nixon had just returned to private law practice in New York after losing the 1962 California gubernatorial race. Abplanalp hired Nixon’s law firm to handle his company’s international affairs, and a close friendship quickly blossomed.
Though Robert downplayed his role during Nixon’s presidency, he always supported him morally and financially. After Nixon’s 1968 election victory, Abplanalp loaned him $625,000 to purchase a San Clemente estate, which became the president’s Western White House. He also renovated a house on his private Bahamian island for Nixon’s getaways and lent him his 55-foot yacht. Interestingly, during the infamous Watergate scandal in June 1972, Nixon was vacationing on Abplanalp’s island. And when Nixon resigned in August 1974, Abplanalp and his other good friend, Bebe Rebozo, immediately flew to San Clemente to offer their support.
Despite rarely speaking publicly about his friendship with the famous politician, Abplanalp remained a loyal friend and supporter of Nixon to the end. In a 1999 interview, when asked about his heroes, he replied, “I have two heroes—my father and Richard Nixon.”
A Generous Heart
In February 1967, during a Fordham Prep alumni dinner, a fundraising campaign for a new school building was officially announced. Anonymous benefactors pledged half a million dollars. It was soon revealed that the donors were Robert and his wife, Josephine, who later added another million dollars to cover construction costs. According to Robert, their generosity was a tribute to Father Arthur V. Shea, a beloved dean of students.
The new building for Fordham Prep, named in Shea’s honor, opened on October 28, 1972. But the school soon faced a financial crisis. In the mid-1970s, it nearly closed its doors. Activists launched a fundraising campaign with large-scale benefit events featuring famous artists and public figures like Bing Crosby, Rosemary Clooney, Ethel Merman, Gloria Swanson, and Bob Hope. Behind the scenes, the Abplanalp family worked tirelessly to help keep the school afloat.
Robert and Josephine, who married in 1956 and had two children—John and Marie—were not only members of the Fordham Prep board of trustees but also generously supported other educational and scientific institutions, including Ursuline School, the University of New England, and the Sabin Vaccine Institute. Each year, they hosted the Institute’s colloquium on their private Bahamian island, where their friend, President Richard Nixon, was a frequent guest.
For their continuous support of Catholic charitable initiatives, the Abplanalps were inducted into the Order of the Knights of Malta and the Order of the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre.
Abplanalp remained an active inventor and patent holder of hundreds of patents until his death at age 81. His lifelong passion for fishing evolved into a keen interest in aquatic ecology—he even owned several fish farms.
Abplanalp served as chairman and CEO of Precision Valve until his passing in 2003. He was survived by his wife, his children, and four grandchildren. His son John, a 1975 graduate of Fordham Prep, became the company’s next president.