John Robert Menard

Background

Menard was born on January 22, 1940, in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, and grew up as the oldest of eight children on a dairy farm. His father, John Menard Sr., was a university professor, and his mother, Rosemary, was a teacher. The family’s connection with Eau Claire’s educational institutions continued across generations.

As a young man, Menard worked in construction and began building pole structures while attending college. The work gave him an early business enterprise and exposed a local demand for readily available lumber and building materials, which later shaped the development of his retail company.

Education

Menard graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire in 1963 with a degree in business administration and a minor in psychology. The institution, then part of Wisconsin’s public higher-education system, developed from a teachers college into a comprehensive regional university serving western Wisconsin and the Chippewa Valley.

He founded the business that became Menards while still a student. His education coincided with the transition of his construction enterprise into a building-materials retailer, linking formal business study with the expansion of a company headquartered in his home community.

Career

Menard began constructing pole buildings in 1958 while working to finance his education. After customers asked to purchase lumber and other building materials, he expanded from construction into retailing and developed Menard Cashway Lumber, the predecessor of the modern Menards chain.

After graduating from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire in 1963, Menard devoted himself to the company’s growth. Menards became a family-owned home-improvement retailer headquartered in Eau Claire, with stores extending across the Midwestern United States. The company’s business model emphasized low prices, direct purchasing, broad merchandise selection, and large-format stores serving both do-it-yourself customers and contractors.

Menard also became a major figure in American motorsports. He fielded Team Menard cars in IndyCar competition beginning in the late 1970s and supported drivers including Herm Johnson, Scott Brayton, Arie Luyendyk, Tony Stewart, Greg Ray, and Al Unser. Menard’s teams won Indy Racing League championships in 1996, 1997, and 1999, and his organization earned prominent Indianapolis 500 qualifying performances. He later partnered with Robby Gordon in racing operations and continued motorsports sponsorship through Menards.

His racing program eventually produced Indianapolis victories through sponsorship rather than a directly operated winning IndyCar entry. In 2011, his son Paul Menard won the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. In 2019, Menards sponsored Simon Pagenaud’s Team Penske Chevrolet in the Indianapolis 500, giving Menard his first Indianapolis 500 victory after decades of involvement in the event.

Achievements

• Menard transformed a pole-building construction business into Menards, a large Midwestern home-improvement retailer with hundreds of stores and a major regional economic presence.

• Team Menard won Indy Racing League championships in 1996, 1997, and 1999, establishing Menard as one of the significant owner-sponsors in American open-wheel racing.

• Menard’s long involvement in Indianapolis racing culminated in a 2019 Indianapolis 500 victory when Menards sponsored Simon Pagenaud’s winning Team Penske Chevrolet.

• Menard provided major support for educational, medical, and civic projects in Eau Claire, including the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Foundation, a YMCA indoor tennis center, and an emergency-medicine facility associated with Mayo Clinic Health System.

Politics

Menard has supported conservative political causes and donated to political groups associated with the Koch brothers. His public political involvement has been expressed primarily through political giving rather than elected office or formal party leadership.

Personality

Menard has been described in business coverage as detail-oriented, frugal, and closely involved in operational decisions. His management style has been associated with tight cost control and an emphasis on low-price retailing.

Interests

• Thoroughbred horse ownership and charity

• Sport & Clubs

  Thoroughbred horse racing and auto racing

Connections

Menard is married and has six children. His son Paul Menard became a professional stock-car driver and competed in the NASCAR Cup Series. Menard’s parents, John Menard Sr. and Rosemary Menard, were graduates of the institution now known as the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire; John Sr. later taught there, and five of Menard’s children also attended the university.

Father:

John Menard Sr.

University professor who taught at the institution now known as the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire.

Mother:

Rosemary Menard

Teacher and graduate of the institution now known as the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire.

Son:

Paul Menard

Professional stock-car driver who competed in the NASCAR Cup Series and won the 2011 Brickyard 400.

References

• Menards: Our History The company’s official history describes Menard’s 1958 construction enterprise, the development of Menard Cashway Lumber, and the growth of Menards into a large Midwestern home-improvement chain.
• University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire 2019 Commencement Program Documents Menard’s 1963 business-administration graduation, the founding and expansion of Menards, his philanthropic support for the university and Eau Claire, and his honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters.
  2019
• John Menard finally gets his Indy 500 win IndyCar’s account describes Menard’s decades as an Indianapolis racing owner and sponsor, his earlier racing milestones, and the 2019 victory achieved with Menards-sponsored Team Penske driver Simon Pagenaud.
  2019
• Who Is John Menard? A trade-publication profile discusses Menard’s Wisconsin upbringing, early pole-building work, transition into building-materials retailing, and low-price business strategy.
  2018
• John Menard, Jr. Forbes identifies Menard as the founder of Menard, Inc., records his Eau Claire residence, education, family size, and ownership of a large privately held home-improvement retailer.
  2026