What Is H. Fisk Johnson's Net Worth?
H. Fisk Johnson is an American businessman who has a net worth of $5 billion. H. Fisk Johnson is best known for serving as chief executive officer of S.C. Johnson & Son, Incorporated, which was founded by his great-grandfather in 1886.
Early Years
Herbert Fisk Johnson III was born on May 19, 1958, in Racine, Wisconsin. The son of Samuel Curtis Johnson and Imogene Powers, Johnson is the great-grandson of Samuel Curtis Johnson, the founder of S.C. Johnson & Son, Incorporated.
Johnson attended the Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in chemistry and physics, a Master of Engineering degree, an MS and a PhD in applied physics, and an MBA in marketing.
He joined the staff of S.C. Johnson & Son, Incorporated in 1987 as a marketing associate. In 2000, he was appointed chairman of the company and, in 2004, as chairman and chief executive officer. As he took over control of S.C. Johnson & Son, Incorporated, he became the fifth generation of his family to lead the company.
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The Family Business
S.C. Johnson & Son, Incorporated is a privately held manufacturer of household cleaning supplies and other products, based in Racine, Wisconsin. The company is one of the oldest family-owned businesses in the United States. It was founded when Samuel Curtis Johnson purchased the parquet flooring division of the Racine Hardware Manufacturing Company and then renamed it S.C. Johnson. Five days a week, Samuel traveled around selling flooring. He returned home at the end of each week so that he could spend weekends completing his company's paperwork. His first year in business netted him a profit of $268.27.
In the years to come, Samuel added floor care products to his inventory, such as wax and wood dye, which he mixed himself. To introduce his new products, he gifted each flooring customer with a can of his prepared paste wax. By 1898, he was selling more of his floor products than flooring.
Samuel's son Herbert was added to the business, and it was renamed S.C. Johnson & Son, Incorporated. National advertising campaigns brought great financial success to the Johnsons, and by 1914, a subsidiary of their company had opened in the United Kingdom.
From the 1930s to the 1950s, the company sponsored several highly popular radio and television shows, such as "Fibber McGee and Mollie" and "The Red Skelton Show."
In 1955, S.C. Johnson & Son, Incorporated began to add products other than those for floor care to their stock, including Pledge polishing spray, Glade air freshener, and Off! insect repellent. The company's headquarters were designated a National Historic Landmark in 1974.
Among the numerous brands owned by S.C. Johnson & Son, Incorporated are Windex, Scrubbing Bubbles, Brillo, Saran Wrap, Ziploc and Raid.
S.C. Johnson & Company, Incorporated has taken unprecedented steps in the area of product transparency under Johnson's leadership. He has publicly stated that consumers have a fundamental right to know what is in the products they use. In 2009, S.C. Johnson & Company, Incorporated launched its North American ingredient communication program. In 2019, the program went global.
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Philanthropy
Every year after he founded S.C. Johnson, Samuel Curtis Johnson donated ten percent of his income toward civic improvements in addition to helping fund a school in Mississippi, making large contributions to the Young Men's Christian Association and the Young Woman's Christian Association and serving as state head of the Sunshine Society which cared for special needs children. The Johnson legacy of extending a helping hand to the community has been carried down through the generations. S.C. Johnson & Son, Incorporated annually donates five percent of pretax profits to charity.
Public Policy Work
Johnson has served as a member of the President's Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiation, as a member of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, as board director and executive board member of Conservation International, and as trustee emeritus and presidential counselor of Cornell University. Johnson currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Consumer Goods Forum and has served on the University of Chicago's Physical Sciences Division Council since 1996.
Accolades
In 2006, on behalf of S.C. Johnson & Son, Incorporated, Johnson accepted a Ron Brown Award for Corporate Leadership, a United States presidential honor that recognizes companies for the exemplary quality of their relationships with employees and communities.
S.R. Johnson & Son, Incorporated has received numerous awards for environmental and social leadership, including the Presidential Green Chemistry Award, the Environmental Protection Agency's Lifetime Atmospheric Achievement Award, the EPA Green Power Leadership Award, the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy's Force for Good Award, the World Environment Center's Gold Medal Award for International Corporate Achievement in Sustainable Development, and the International Leadership Award from the United States Council for International Business.
Personal Life
Johnson wed former emergency room physician, Dr. Susan Lochhead, to whom he was married for thirteen months before a three-year divorce battle took place. The court proceedings finally came to an end when Johnson agreed to pay child support for his daughter in the amount of $38,000 per month.
He is a licensed pilot and an avid scuba diver. He resides in Racine, Wisconsin.
