Obituary: Frank Sleeper

WORCESTER, Mass. — Memorial services took place here last week for Frank Sleeper, the founder of general merchandise wholesaler Imperial Distributors, who died last month in Ocoee, Fla. According to the company's website, Sleeper, a native of Worcester, was 25 years old when he launched the business in 1939 with a second-hand delivery truck and fewer than 100 cases of such items as toothpaste, shampoo and aspirin. He supplied grocery stores with a homemade cabinet to display the products.