Other Leading Industries | Retail
President and CEO
Ashley Furniture  | Arcadia
Todd Wanek has led Ashley Furniture Industries, the largest home furniture manufacturer and retailer in the U.S., for the past 20 years. The Arcadia-based company was founded by Wanek’s father, current chairman Ronald Wanek.
Wanek got his start in the family business as general manager of Ashley Furniture Industries Taiwan, working in Asia from 1989 to 1993. He returned to the U.S. in the mid- ‘90s and was promoted to chief operations officer in 1996, assuming responsibility of Ashley’s worldwide operations.
Today, Ashley has over 30 million square feet of manufacturing and distribution facilities across California, Florida, Mississippi, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas and Wisconsin. Its retail footprint includes more than 1,000 Ashley HomeStores and it sells furniture in 20,000 stores across 155 countries. It has more than 35,000 employees worldwide, including 17,000 in the U.S. The company also owns the industry’s largest transportation fleet, which includes 1,225 tractors and 4,000 trailers. Locally, the company opened a new unholstered furniture manufacturing plant last year in Chippewa Falls, which was expected to create about 200 jobs. The company has about $6.6 billion in annual revenue, according to Forbes.
Wanek and his wife, Karen Wanek (president of Superior Fresh), have donated large gifts to City of Hope in Duarte, California, for its Diabetes and Metabolism Research Institute; High Point University, where their son attended college; and political candidates including former Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker.
Todd Wanek’s net worth is estimated at $2.8 billion, placing him among Forbes’ list of the 400 wealthiest Americans in 2022.
Education: Bachelor’s, University of Wisconsin-Stout