Quick Facts
Biography
John Robert Menard Jr. (born January 22, 1940) is an American entrepreneur and billionaire who is the founder and owner of Menards, a Midwestern chain of home improvement stores. He is also a former IndyCar racing team owner. He is also the father of NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Paul Menard. He is the 136th richest person in the world, and the 68th richest person in the United States.
Life and education
The oldest of eight siblings in a Catholic family with German, French-Canadian, Norwegian roots, Menard attended Eau Claire Regis High School. Menard graduated from the University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire with a degree in business and a minor in psychology. Menard began his career constructing pole buildings with friends from college. He made his home in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. Menard has six children, and married his third wife, Fay Obiad in 2008.
Menards
Menard opened his first hardware store in 1972. As of 2014, his company owned 287 Menards stores. As of 2005 Menards grossed an estimated $5.5 billion in sales. Menard had a net worth of $8.6 billion in 2013, according to the Forbes 400, and is the richest person in Wisconsin.
Motorsports involvement
Paul Menard, John Jr.'s son, is the driver of the #27 Menards Chevrolet in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Menard also owns an engine shop in the United Kingdom that produced engines for Team Menard and Robby Gordon Motorsports, the former of which, owned by Menard, won the 1997 and 1999 Indy Racing League championships.
Charity
In January 2008, Menard gave $15 million to support Eau Claire's Luther Midelfort Hospital. The donation will be used for a new emergency services department and to help Mayo Clinic educate and train health professionals.
Political activities
A supporter of conservative causes, Menard has donated to the political groups of the Koch Brothers.
Controversy
In 1997, John Menard was caught using his own pickup truck to haul plastic bags filled with chromium and arsenic-laden wood ash to his own home for disposal along with his household trash. Menard pleaded no contest to felony and misdemeanor charges involving records violations, unlawful transportation and improper disposal of hazardous waste. Menard and his company were fined $1.7 million for 21 violations.
In 2013, Menard ousted a former investment partner, Stephen Hilbert, a 20% shareholder in MH Equity, for mismanaging assets and resources.