Odesa Honors a Marketing Pioneer

In Odesa, another street has undergone a name change. Pestelya Street in the Khadyzhibey district has been renamed to honor Simon Litman — one of the founders of global marketing. He was born in Odesa in 1873 and became the first marketing lecturer in the United States. This was reported by the Odesa City Council.

Who is the new namesake

The street Pestelya in Odesa has been renamed after Simon Litman. This change serves as a tribute to the remarkable economist and one of the early marketing theorists in the world. Simon Litman was born in Odesa in 1873. He studied at the Odesa Commercial School, which is now known as the Odesa National Economic University. After emigrating to the United States, Litman became the first marketing instructor in higher education.

In 1911, he published the work "Trade and Commerce" — one of the first marketing textbooks in the world. Litman taught at the University of California and the University of Illinois, and his lectures laid the groundwork for modern business education programs in the USA, Canada, Europe, and Japan. Litman was the first to define marketing as a distinct science — not just about sales, but about understanding people's needs, communication, and trust. His approach became the foundation of what today is known as customer-oriented business.