Alexander Makinsky

Alexander Makinsky
Born	Template:Birth date Maku, Iran
Died	April 24, 1988(1988-04-24) (aged 87)
Occupation(s)	Entrepreneur, corporate executive, professor
Known for	Vice-president of export operations at The Coca-Cola Company; General Representative for the Rockefeller Foundation in France

Alexander Makinsky (; October 13, 1900 – April 24, 1988) was a noble-born American entrepreneur originating from Maku, Iran. He held the position of General Representative for the Rockefeller Foundation in France before advancing to assistant vice president roles in both Paris and New York. Subsequently, he became vice-president of export operations at The Coca-Cola Company.

Early life

Hailing from the Makinsky lineage with roots in the Bayat tribe of Maku, his father Pasha Khan Makinsky (1862–1934) descended as a great-grandson of Hoseyn Khan Bayat. His mother, Stefania Antonovna Lubielska (1878–1964), was ethnically Polish and Pasha Khan’s second spouse. Within his family circle, he was affectionately called Shura. Raised in Baku under the care of a British governess, he acquired proficiency in English. He pursued studies at the esteemed Imperial School of Jurisprudence located in Saint Petersburg, but fled Russia alongside his brother Karim following the 1917 October Revolution. The family initially relocated to Warsaw before settling in Paris.

During his time in Paris, Makinsky became integrated into European high society and the White émigré community, attending various social gatherings where he met Catherine Melikoff from the noble Melikishvili lineage; they wed on November 14, 1925. Additionally, he established connections with notable literary figures such as Antoine de Saint-Exupery and James Joyce while residing in Paris.

Professional life

Before joining the Rockefeller Foundation, he contributed to the American Red Cross in Warsaw. In 1924, he assumed the role of chief secretary for the Medical Sciences Division at the Rockefeller Foundation in France. Rapidly promoted to representative, he was summoned back to Washington after the 1941 Nazi occupation of France, where he became assistant to the foundation’s vice president. Utilizing his intelligence contacts, he was instrumental in facilitating safe passage and permanent academic placements for scholars escaping Nazi persecution, including figures like Otto Fritz Meyerhof, Jean Wahl, and Ernst Honigman. Following World War II, he conducted extensive interviews with European scholars to inform the Rockefeller Foundation’s strategy in social sciences, influencing American policies on Europe's economic reconstruction.

In 1946, recruited by Robert W. Woodruff, Makinsky joined The Coca-Cola Company as chief lobbyist for Europe. He encountered significant resistance from French vintners and communist groups while promoting Coca-Cola amid national controversies over additives such as caffeine and phosphoric acid. These obstacles motivated him to set an ambitious goal of selling forty bottles per capita in France by 1952. His lobbying efforts extended to establishing Coca-Cola production facilities across Egypt, Israel, Denmark, Portugal, Bulgaria, and ultimately within the USSR.

After forming a friendship with President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1954, Makinsky provided counsel to government officials on policies concerning post-Nazi Europe and accompanied delegations with Richard Nixon and Milton S. Eisenhower during the 1959 American National Exhibition held in Moscow. Despite frequent travels to the USSR, he faced accusations by Pravda in 1968 alleging CIA espionage activities dating back prior to World War II. Alongside his corporate responsibilities, he held a professorship in social sciences at Sorbonne University and received the prestigious Legion of Honour on July 25, 1957.

Death

He passed away on 24 April 1988 and was laid to rest at the Sainte-Geneviève-des-Bois Russian Cemetery in Paris. His wife Catherine outlived him by two years, and he was also survived by his brother, Cyril Makinsky (1910–1991).