Menards

20th century

In 1958, John Menard Jr. began building post-frame buildings to finance his college education. By the end of 1959, he found it necessary to hire extra crews, and to purchase more pieces of equipment to keep up with demand. After graduating from the Wisconsin State College at Eau Claire (now University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire) in 1962, Menard purchased land in Eau Claire, Wisconsin and built an office and shop. The company was founded in 1960  and incorporated in 1962. The first Menards hardware store opened in 1964. By opening a truss plant in the late 1960s, Menards grew to produce more substantial building materials on-site. The truss plant evolved into the Menard Building Division, which produced steel siding and roofing, interior and exterior doors, decking and treated lumber, and other materials. Between the 1970s and 1980s Menards began opening locations in Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota. The company expanded into Nebraska in 1990, Illinois in 1991 and Indiana and Michigan in 1992. Menards sold the Menard Building Division in 1994, racking up 36 years in the pole building industry.

Menards was founded as Menard Cashway Lumber. In 1984, the "Cashway Lumber" name was dropped and the business became simply known to this day as Menards (though it was spelled with an apostrophe-s well into the 1980s).

21st century

In 2000, the company opened its 150th store. During the early and mid 2000s, Menards expanded into Ohio.

In 2007, Menards opened its third and fourth distribution centers in Holiday City, Ohio, and Shelby, Iowa, which are 669,000 square feet (62,200 m2) and 735,000 square feet (68,300 m2), respectively. In 2008, the company expanded further into the United States Mid-south in Missouri. In 2009, Menards opened its first Wyoming location in Casper. Then it was followed by another location in Gillette and one more in Cheyenne. In 2011, the company expanded into Kansas. In 2012, Menards opened its first Kentucky location in Owensboro. Six more locations opened in Kentucky; one in Louisville, another in Paducah, another in Elizabethtown, another in Florence, another in Bowling Green, and the last one in Richmond.

In 2020, Menards expanded into West Virginia, opening four locations in that state: one in Wheeling, another in Morgantown, another in Barboursville and the last one in Bridgeport. There will be a fifth Menards in West Virginia in Parkersburg, followed by a sixth location in Charleston.

A fifth manufacturing and distribution center in Ravenna, Ohio began construction in Spring 2022 after a two-year-long delay. The distribution center in Ravenna will supplement the chain's expansion into Northeast Ohio and Western Pennsylvania. Menards announced in 2022 that it would open its first Pennsylvania location in Washington. A second Menards in Uniontown has been delayed.

Controversies

According to Milwaukee Magazine in 2007, Menards was cited with more regulatory violations involving air/water pollution and hazardous waste disposal than any other company in Wisconsin. It also alleges that the company is strongly anti-union, to the point that it will not hire anyone who has ever worked in a union shop, even if they did so while in their teen years.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Michigan's Attorney General Dana Nessel sent Menards a cease and desist letter citing 18 complaints from consumers in regards to price gouging on products such as face masks and bleach. "Big box stores are not immune to the Michigan Consumer Protection Act or the Governor's Executive Order", Nessel said. "Large corporations must also play by the rules, and my office will work diligently to ensure this state's consumers are treated fairly and not abused by businesses seeking to unlawfully jack prices up to line their pockets with profits at the expense of the public during this time of great need." Nessel said that Menards would have 10 days to respond to the letter, or she would potentially take legal action.

During the early stages of the pandemic, Menards instituted a policy that prohibited children under age 16 in stores, to the frustration of single parents who do not have other childcare options. The policy for children was later relaxed.