COLUMBUS, Ind. -- Richard L. Johnson, who amassed a fortune building a Columbus oil distributorship and the former Bigfoot convenience-store chain, has died at age 76. Mr. Johnson, whose name graces the entrepreneurship center at Indiana University's Kelley School of Business, died Thursday at his Brown County home, according to a report in the Indianapolis Star.
He was a self-made millionaire who founded Johnson Oil Co. in Columbus, Ind., in 1957 with a $10,000 loan co-signed by his father. In 1981, he realized that gas stations were fast evolving into convenience [image-nocss] stores that sold gas. He opened a convenience store in nearby Nashville, using the whimsical name Bigfoot that was suggested at a family meeting.
"It was supposed to be fun and different and interesting," his son Rick told the newspaper of the Bigfoot name and monster logo.
Bigfoot grew into a chain of 225 convenience stores selling gasoline in Indiana, Illinois and Kentucky.
The chain was sold for $65.8 million in 2001 to the largest Canadian convenience-store retailer, Alimentation Couche-Tard, which has since replaced the Bigfoot name.
Sale proceeds were put into Johnson Ventures, which let the family diversify its wealth into numerous businesses, including Indiana Limestone, AuthorHouse and Central Restaurant Products. AuthorHouse and Central Restaurant have since been sold.
Rick Johnson, who is president of Johnson Ventures, said it will continue in business.
His father was a former president of the Indiana Oil Marketers Association and was honored as a distinguished entrepreneur in 1994 by Indiana University. The entrepreneurship program at IU that bears his name was established in 1989.
Rick Johnson said his father "worked hard; he always had a penchant for doing a little better, and he was just a good guy."
Other survivors include his wife, Ruth; daughter, Jenny; and two grandchildren. Services will be at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday in Fairlawn Presbyterian Church, Columbus, Ind. CSP Daily News sends its condolences to Johnson's family.
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