Willis Johnson | |
|---|---|
| Born | Willis J. Johnson 1947 (age 77–78) Clinton, Oklahoma, U.S. |
| Known for | Founder of Copart Inc. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Joyce Johnson |
| Children | 3 |
| Relatives |
|
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Branch |  United States Army |
| Battles / wars | Vietnam War |
| Awards | Purple Heart |
Willis J. Johnson (born 1947) is an American billionaire businessman. [1] He is the founder and former chief executive of Copart, a vehicle salvage and auction company, founded in 1982. [2] [3]
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Born in 1947 in Clinton, Oklahoma, [4] Johnson grew up on a dairy farm in the vicinity of Siloam Springs, Arkansas. [5] He received his early education from a high school in California. [1] Johnson then joined the Army and served a year-long tour in Vietnam which earned him a Purple Heart. In 1972, he bought his own junkyard in Sacramento, California, [5] and moved his family into a trailer to fund his purchase. [1] He took Copart public in 1994. [5] He launched an online bidding platform for wrecked cars in 1998 [1] (or 2002 [5] ).
Willis Johnson retired from his position of CEO of Copart in 2010 and moved to Nashville, Tennessee. [5]
In 2015, he co-founded now defunct on-demand household chore app, Takl. [5] July 2021.
Johnson is politically conservative and supports the Republican Party. [1] Since 2001, he has contributed at least $1.5 million to different conservative causes. [1]
In 2019, he contributed $50,000 to the Trump Victory Committee, a political action committee. [1] Together with his spouse, Johnson contributed a total of $700,000 to Donald Trump's 2020 presidential campaign. [6]
In 2021, he donated $1 million to South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem to fund a National Guard deployment to the Texas/Mexico border. [7] [8]
In 2010, he bought an 18,600 square foot mansion in Nashville for $28 million from American country singer Alan Jackson. [1] [9]
Johnson also owns a 79-acre vineyard in Suisun Valley, California. [9]
Johnson is married to Joyce, whom he married after returning from the Vietnam War. [5] Johnson is a practising Christian. [5]
Johnson resides in Franklin, Tenn., and owns a large collection of classic cars, including a 1955 Chevrolet. [10]
His son-in-law, Jay Adair, is the chief executive officer (CEO) of Copart, and owns shares in the company worth more than $800 million. [1]
His grandson is TN General Assembly member, State Representative Jake McCalmon, a Republican in Williamson County.
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