Tough competition was nothing new for Pauls dad. Petree had won a pair of NASCAR championships as Dale Earnhardts crew chief, but struggled to find sponsors when he formed his own team. John Menard and his company have had more run-ins with the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) than any other Wisconsin company, state justice department lawyers wrote in a complaint against Menard in 2005. Increasingly, new stores cannibalize sales at a chains existing stores or they bump heads with a competitor, Spanbauer says. www .menards .com. LLP. It runs neck-and-neck with Home Depot in Chicago (each has around 30 stores) and dominates Minneapolis-St. Paul with 19 stores. Empire building can be an all-consuming task, and John wasnt always there after his son crossed the finish line. [Reached by phone, Renee laughed and said No. After just two years of working with the pole barn company, John Menard hired his own crew and began selling pole buildings himself at the side of the road near his familys farm. He developed a habit of dousing himself with cologne, says one insider. The result was a unique shopping experience. He had owned an Indy-car racing team for 25 years, beginning before Paul was born. That meant a $15,000 cut in his $40,000 salary, but Helget still agreed. And it might be only the beginning of an even bigger U.K. commitment to Ukraines rearmament. Hes probably done things people dont see, McCoy speculates. Home Depot worried less about theft and error than the lifetime value of the customer. But Home Depots was worth $98.6 million and Lowes was $143.6 million. Compensation for Menards other corporate officers, revealed in the companys 1998 tax case, showed a massive drop from the CEOs salary: operations manager Larry Menard at a $45,000 base salary and $180,000 bonus; Johns son, Christopher, then still with the company as corporate secretary and Eau Clare distribution center manager, at $172,815; Marvin Prochaska, head of real estate, at $121,307, and chief financial officer and treasurer Earl Rasmussen with $55,702. John Menard Jr also clings to his mantra, Save Big Money with Menards, even as the original low-price leader, Wal-Mart, has begun to question whether an obsession with price still works, given its slowing sales growth. US$ 13 billion (2022) Owner. Paul's father John Menard, the richest man in Wisconsin, had long loved racing. When Bropst showed up in court with the 50 applications hed received over the Internet from Menards employees, the judge dismissed the complaint. Bropst, too, had dared to question an order, this time from John Menard. Wedding Venues John Menard considered Chicago the heart of his territory, and he was determined to dominate in that market. Many Menards units have the ambience of, The 11-room, one-story wood home has five bedrooms, three baths, two fireplaces and a property assessment of $425,000. He is a former INDYCAR racing team owner, and the father of former NASCAR Cup Series driver Paul Menard. He and others, Firestone, the Speedway, Dale Earnhardt Sr., Roger Penske, they contributed a lot of money for a scholarship for [Scotts 2-year-old daughter] Carly, Lee Brayton says. There are new treasures, says Edward S. Archibald, who left the company two years ago after a 27-year tenure that included a decade and a half as a top executive. The company plans more monster stores. The manager spent a small fortune on plane fare commuting back and forth. Those who know him say John was probably already on his way back to company headquarters in Eau Claire. Kohler had inherited the plumbing empire founded by his grandfather. The second prong was Menards ear-worm ads featuring freelance Wisconsin announcer Ray Szmanda and the slogan Save big money at Menards. The folksy Menards Guy became almost a cult figure. By contrast, the Lowes management team is considered top notch. And the pay for managers was generous: $80,000 to $200,000 a year with bonus and profit-sharing included. See Photos. The National Home Center News,a New York-based trade publication, quoted vendors describing Menard as tenacious, frightening, entrepreneurial and paranoid all in the same breath.. I bought over two fork lifts of it myself, $4,000 worth, Bauman recalls, and when I got back to the store, theyd credit back the money.. Archibald demanded proof, he says, and when none was provided, walked out and never returned. In 2002, Menard owed more in personal federal income tax than any other American: $228 million on $593 million in adjusted gross income. 1995-08-21 John in Tuscany with Sandermans inside the house by John Menard Stolzenfels Castle - Rhine marker 585km by John Menard View of Saint Nicholas Church from St Michael's Bridge by John Menard The Helgets were elated until they discovered Eldons contract with Menards barred him from working for a competitor for a year. Id hear them on the phone and youd never hear so much swearing in your life. The new dictate required that managers pay a $200 deductible if a delivery driver they hired was in a traffic accident. Questioning their policy was the beginning of the end, Faber says now. His hair color could be red, golden brown or shoe-polish black, says a former insider, explaining that one of Menards ex-girlfriends owns a salon. They comparison shop constantly, says Bauman. Reflects change since 5 pm ET of prior trading day. Faber was offered a demotion in a different city. But the real competition remained in Chicago, hastening the demise of smaller regional chains Courtesy Home Centers, Builders Square and Handy Andy. In the 1980s, he bought ships full of Fiat tractor parts that had been refused by the customer whod ordered them. Menard often goes through the mail of his top executives and tirelessly reads through customer complaints, former insiders say, looking for problems or hints that an employee gave something away at his expense. Below we countdown to John Menard, Jr. upcoming birthday. The Price of Success (Dawn Sands has filed an arbitration action against the company and declined to comment.). The third-largest home improvement retail business in the nation is owned by this hardware magnate. Menard and his company were fined $1.7 million for 21 violations. Thats how business works.. John Willis Menard, (born April 3, 1838, Kaskaskia, Illinois, U.S.died October 8, 1893, Washington, D.C.), American publisher and politician who was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1868, the first African American to win election to the U.S. Congress. Apart from his achievements from his profession as a businessman, his success as a father has also made him famous. When I was promoted to assistant general store manager, the first thing I had to do was go to a one-and-one-half-day seminar in Eau Claire about fighting unions, says Baumann. Archibald demanded proof, he says, and when none was provided, walked out and never returned. Things went more smoothly on the race track. Even those who know him well describe him in contradictory terms, as both hero and villain; the very model of a successful American entrepreneur; both brilliant and charming, yet also a foul-mouthed micromanager and a perfectionist who can be cruelly demanding with employees. They wanted $25,000 from me for my non-complete clause. Bropst spent $4,000 in legal fees, eventually getting the ADVERTISEMENT. Lowes entered the market in 1999. He is the father of Paul Menard, a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver. A former Menard racing partner, Cheever once spent an hour and half arguing with Menard over a $25 hotel bill, only to pay it himself. Scrap wood that couldnt be sold was used for heat, after any nails were reclaimed using magnetic rollers. Archive I still love John like a brother, Archibald swears, but he couldnt stomach his treatment. In his world, everything is measured by your bank account, says a former high-level corporate exec who asked for anonymity. Our History. A 2002 tax filing showed Menard owned 100 percent of the companys voting stock and 56 percent of its nonvoting stock. Also in 2006: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued an administrative order against Menards for damaging a Sioux Falls, S.D., stream that ran through its property by filling in 1,350 linear feet of the stream and replacing it with a 66-inch storm sewer pipe. Menard rarely gives interviews and refused to grant one for this article. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience. Hed also protected it from big-league interlopers Home Depot and Lowes, and between 1996 and 2007, his personal net worth grew from $775 million to $5.2 billion, according to Forbes magazine. In 2005, Menards agreed to a $2 million fine after Wisconsin DNR officials found a floor drain in a company shop that they believed was used to dump paint, solvents, oil and other waste into a lagoon that fed into a tributary of the Chippewa River. Menard found another way to beat his rivals. By age 8, he'd scored his first competitive win. Menards wheeling and dealing produced an eccentric merchandise mix. But he hated the morning chores, fearing they left him smelling like the farm when he got to the local Catholic high school. He doesnt go for all these foundations and write-offs, offers former Eau Claire state senator Dave Zien. He makes his home in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. That meant a $15,000 cut in his $40,000 salary, but Helget still agreed. View John Maynard results in Wisconsin (WI) including current phone number, address, relatives, background check report, and property record with Whitepages. John Menard III Edward Norton 0 2,294 John Menard Net Worth John Robert Menard Jr. was born on 22 January 1940, in Eau Claire, Wisconsin USA, to mother Rosemary, a Catholic grade school teacher and father John Menard Sr., a university Read More He built a mammoth two-story store in St. Paul, Minn., complete with a moving walkway that carries customers carts past a baby grand piano and plasma screens advertising specials to the second level. When Menard heard the news, he was salivating, says Archibald. More often, Menard gets outraged at those who question how he runs the company he built. The Menard brothers are notorious for dressing down employees. He thought he was a real stud muffin the way he talked and I said who are you to tell us where to live? I told him someday I hope a train runs you over and cuts your legs off.. She was getting too big for her mother Linda to carry her up the stairs, and because the bathroom couldnt accommodate her wheelchair, the girl had no privacy. One of his sons is named John Menard III. It changes every day. Menards ended 1993 with $1.7 billion in sales, aided considerably by 18 new Chicago stores in three formats, ranging from small Hardware Plus outfits to super stores. If John Menard was in a given city, hed do his own, often in a crude, but unintentional, disguise. Locked in legal battle with U.S. government over $5.7 million in back taxes stemming from old salary dividend. Theyd say, Ill buy this from you, so what are you going to give me for free?, In 1979, Menard invested in a $65,000 race car and hired a neighbor to drive it in the Indianapolis 500. We can see lines at registers and do corrective action. The result was often a blizzard of memos to store managers, insiders say. Nothing moves without his approval.. Helgets daughter was confined to a wheelchair and the narrow hallways in the Helget home made it difficult to get around. Ander, the retail consultant, says that Menards Inc. has succeeded through strong leadership by a benevolent dictator. But after the dictators gone, does the culture survive? Ander asks. In 2003, Menards sued Home Depot, alleging it ripped off his companys flyers and posted them in its stores. When I was promoted to assistant general store manager, the first thing I had to do was go to a one-and-one-half-day seminar in Eau Claire about fighting unions, says Baumann. 'Daisy Jones & The Six' is breaking records and topping charts. Linda Helget phoned Menard to plead with him to relent. Menards managers would quietly buy trucks full of the competitors product. Hes the only one that wants it, but hes not capable, says a former high-ranking executive. John was very, very good to the family. I was nearly 40 years old and I figured it was time to stand up for myself or Id dance their tune forever. Bropst quit. (He is now an analyst for ABC-ESPNs 2007 NASCAR coverage.). Id hear them on the phone and youd never hear so much swearing in your life. Arsenic and Old Waste two of them. In 1999, Advertising Age hailed Menards excellence in brand building in going head-to-head with Home Depot. Menard was named one of the publications 100 marketing marvels. A former Menards exec calls the train set John Menards perfect world, because he controls everything. Today, the ex-employee adds, Menard heats most of the 60-plus buildings at his nearly 650-acre Eau Clare corporate headquarters by burning scrap pallets. At that point, Bropst says, his new employer said youve got a store to run, and it joined in his defense. According to sources, Menard has established a net worth of over $9.1 billion, as of early 2016 - he has earned his wealth by operating the country's third largest home improvement company. Hes normally by himself and just moves in and out of the shadows, says Indianapolis Motor Speedway track historian Donald Davidson. This rule came from Menards concern that his trade secrets might be revealed. Perhaps giddy with victory, he suddenly opened up to the media, even confessing to a national publication that he fantasized about driving his race car over Home Depots CEO. Menard is also a partner in Robby Gordon Motorsports with NASCAR owner/driver Robby Gordon, and is the father of NASCAR driver Paul Menard. Its about power, Archibald says. He has controlled every aspect of the company since he started it. When he gets happy, I think he struggles with that. Faber was offered a demotion in a different city. After just two years of working with the pole barn company, John Menard hired his own crew and began selling pole buildings himself at the side of the road near his familys farm. He distrusts that., Johns life is his business, Archibald says. Here, Scott and Lauren Neustadter talk about falling in love with Taylor Jenkins Reid's novel. Last year, the value of Menards racing-circuit exposure was worth $22.2 million, estimates sponsorship expert Eric Wright. Menard often goes through the mail of his top executives and tirelessly reads through customer complaints, former insiders say, looking for problems or hints that an employee gave something away at his expense. But Home Depots was worth $98.6 million and Lowes was $143.6 million. You cant just sell items any more, says Ander. Historically, the companies Home Depot and Lowes had put out of business were the size of Menards. The donation will be used for a new emergency services department and to help Mayo Clinic educate and train health professionals. In 2004 and 2005, while Lowes and Home Depot downsized and focused on opening smaller, 80,000- to 100,000-square-foot urban stores, Menard super-sized his new stores. He said we could find a house in another town, but all our friends and family are here. Home Depot entered another Menards stronghold, Milwaukee, in 1998. For big box retailers, threes a crowd, and the third-best is inevitably driven out of business, says Ander, the Chicago-based retail consultant. But in much of its 11-state region Wisconsin, Minnesota, the Dakotas, Iowa, Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri and Nebraska Menards ranks first or second. Theres an independent streak that runs through the family and owning your own business has always been a big deal, says his cousin Frank Watson. A Merrill Lynch report last summer put the U.S. retail home improvement industry at 85 percent saturation. Home Depot, not Menards, is the Official Home Improvement Warehouse of NASCAR. In 2005, Home Depot with former Menards driver Tony Stewart captured NASCARs top prize, the Nextel Cup championship, then Lowes won the crown in 2006. The economist is married to Fay Obiad, his starsign is Aquarius and he is now 83 years of age. He had his own show to run, a small farm construction business he had started. Many of the richest people in the United States have gotten richer over the course of the pandemic, including Eau Claire's John Menard jr. Instead, he got a cowboy in jeans with his shirt partially unbuttoned and a chain around his neck, he says. John Menard in Eau Claire, WI We found 23 records for John Menard in Eau Claire, WI. Hes had six children by three women, married and divorced He worked days on his fledgling business, nights at a local movie theater. They were clean cut so they could be sold or made into treated tree rings.. Menard pleaded no contest to felony and misdemeanor charges involving records violations, unlawful transportation and improper disposal of hazardous waste. Additional IRS cases show the Paul C. Menard 1985 Trust had a 2002 taxable income of $30.4 million; Mollys trust, $4.5 million. Greater Eau Claire Area Chamber of Commerce President Robert S. McCoy says Menard does support Regis High School, a Catholic school. In 1994, Wisconsin obtained a civil judgment against Menards for the unlicensed transportation and disposal of ash produced by incinerating CCA-treated lumber. By sending in a rebate coupon, customers got their name on Menards mailing list, and a coupon they could cash on their next visit. In 1972, he incorporated Menards Inc. and opened his first hardware store just in time to catch the building wave of do-it-yourselfers, according to industry analysts. And two long-running girlfriends, Darla [the hairstylist] and Debbie, an attorney., In late 2006, Menard broke up with his fiance, Debbie, just two weeks after firing her sister, the companys general counsel of 10 years, Dawn Sands. He built a mammoth two-story store in St. Paul, Minn., complete with a moving walkway that carries customers carts past a baby grand piano and plasma screens advertising specials to the second level. Bauman recalls Home Depot selling oriented strand board, a plywood substitute, for much less. Theres an emotional youthfulness and wonder about him like a kid having fun and then he says, wait a minute, I cant control that, and he tries to control absolutely everything, says Kight. John strong-armed me to a point where I probably should have said no, Petree says now, explaining he was soon at the financial breaking point., More crushing for Petree, in midseason, John took his millions and his son and joined forces with Dale Earnhardt Inc., the racing team run by Earnhardts widow. He worked days on his fledgling business, nights at a local movie theater. Thats how business works.. Managers who questioned the rules might do worse. Menards was adamant about keeping a union out of its stores. With military-like discipline, a managers absences are tightly John Robert Menard Jr. (born January 22, 1940) is an American billionaire businessman, and the founder and owner of Menards, a Midwestern chain of home improvement stores. But Helgets boss, Larry Menard, said there were no exceptions to the company rule. Thats the toughest question, says former Menard engineering director Kight. His parents were teachers John Menard Sr., a University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire math professor; his mother, Rosemary, at St. James the Greater, a Catholic grade school. If you wanted shelf space at Menards, you were pushed to buy a racing sponsorship. John R Menard III, age 80+, lives in Eau Claire, WI. Subscribe John Menard, Jr. will celebrate 84rd birthday on a Monday 22nd of January 2024. Menards utilizes fines and the threat of fines against . Faber testified later that Larry told him hed hire someone younger who would probably do a better job for less money if Faber didnt want the job. Menards catchy slogan, Save Big Money at Menards, seemed to jingle relentlessly from every radio and TV, worming its way into the heads of shoppers across Americas heartland. Home Depot, not Menards, is the Official Home Improvement Warehouse of NASCAR. In 2005, Home Depot with former Menards driver Tony Stewart captured NASCARs top prize, the Nextel Cup championship, then Lowes won the crown in 2006. And the pay for managers was generous: $80,000 to $200,000 a year with bonus and profit-sharing included. He wanted to escape it, Watson adds. Eau Claires city fathers would love to have The Menard Center, a civic and convention hub funded by the entrepreneur, but as Menards cousin Watson says, I dont see why John needs another building with his name on it; hes already got over 200., Menard is frugal at home, too. The managers wife had triplets that came early and required special attention at the University of Minnesota Medical Center. There are new treasures, says Edward S. Archibald, who left the company two years ago after a 27-year tenure that included a decade and a half as a top executive. A 2002 tax filing showed Menard owned 100 percent of the companys voting stock and 56 percent of its nonvoting stock. Its entertainment. Its stores are newer, cleaner and offer a shopping experience emphasizing the fashion element of home improvement that women particularly like. His drivers and race cars would greet guests at grand-openings of new stores. In 1972, he incorporated Menards Inc. and opened his first hardware store just in time to catch the building wave of do-it-yourselfers, according to industry analysts. He wanted to escape it, Watson adds. The company notified Helget that if he ever showed up on its property again, hed be arrested for trespassing. Some budget-squeezed managers could be so short staffed, they had trouble meeting demands headquarters placed upon them. Menards catchy slogan, Save Big Money at Menards, seemed to jingle relentlessly from every radio and TV, worming its way into the heads of shoppers across Americas heartland. But the real competition remained in Chicago, hastening the demise of smaller regional chains Courtesy Home Centers, Builders Square and Handy Andy. Managers have to make do with very lean staffing. No, when asked to discuss her father. All Menards managers must sign an agreement requiring them to go to arbitration not the courts if they have a dispute with the company. Even minor building projects concerned him. How home improvement store founder John Menard Jr became the richest man in Wisconsin and what he sacrificed to do it. Menards marketing strategy was three-pronged, beginning with a weekly circular that featured low-priced and even free goods like a 75-cent extension cord. It was 1960 and he was just 20 years old. Find your friends on Facebook. John Menard Jr, It was clear Mr. Menard is very, very secure in himself. John opened Menards Cashway Lumber to serve them, and upon graduation from college in 1963, turned down a job with IBM to build his own company. Driver Eddie Cheever set an Indy 500 lap record speed of 236.103 mph. The new dictate required that managers pay a $200 deductible if a delivery driver they hired was in a traffic accident. In the arbitration case last August, former Menards assistant store manager Cory Lickiss testified under oath that the day before he resigned, Larry Menard had called him a f-cking retard in front of 15 customers and many employees. Menard would buy up a manufacturers overstock and rejects for pennies on the dollar. His father was not. Even those closest to Menard are not sure what drives him. John is related to Mark Menard and Charla R Menard as well as 1 additional person. Helget, who had a stellar 13-year record with the company, could resign his post and take a lower-level job, Larry said. On numerous occasions, former managers say, Menard hired private investigators to take photos when an employee added a deck or addition, then had internal examiners cross-reference the materials in the photos with items the employee had purchased, looking for products that had been stolen. Johns absolutely driven to maximize everything, says Steve Kight, former managing director of Menards British racing engine company, Menard Engineering Ltd. Menard quickly grew Cashway, adding a truss plant, operations for treating lumber, producing countertops, pre-hung doors, boards, steel and nails. Team Menard Inc. won the Indy Racing League championship twice. It doesnt want to take business from them. We can see too many carts, not enough carts. Helgets daughter was confined to a wheelchair and the narrow hallways in the Helget home made it difficult to get around.