To be the forth generation of a family business and still able to affect that business takes unique attributes and acumen. That has been the life work of Gordon P. Connor. Forever a champion of industry and never one to laud himself or his deeds; Gordon P. Connor has spent a lifetime working diligently not for the gain himself but for many.
Born in Marshfield, Wisconsin July 30, 1937, Mr. Connor moved to Wakefield, Michigan at the age of three where his father was building a mill in Connorville, Michigan. Gordon P. Connor graduated from the University of Wisconsin in 1959 with a BS in Engineering and then received his Masters of Business Administration from Harvard University in 1961.
After Harvard, Mr. Connor worked for Brittingham investment firm in Wilmington, Delaware. In 1962 he left the world of investment banking and established a finishing plant for kitchen cabinets and juvenile furniture in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania, for Connor Forest Ind. Late in 1963, Mr. Connor moved to Wausau and started Connor’s kitchen cabinet business. It was the great success of the kitchen cabinet business and other initiatives of G.P. Connor, which lead to his becoming CEO of Connor Forest Industries.
Although, perhaps not completely understood, is Gordon P. Connor’s ability to move strategically. He became Executive Vice President of Connor Forest Industries in 1966 with responsibilities for sawmills and timberlands, flooring and kitchen cabinets. Gordon P. Connor was instrumental in the acquisition of the Ford Motor Company timberlands in 1966, which increased the Connor’s timberlands holding’s in Michigan to 140,000 acres. Ultimately his bold moves -the acquisition of the Ford Motor Company lands, the building of the Connor kitchen cabinet business, the purchase in 1973 of Sifo Toy Co., the purchase of a plywood veneer and sawmill in Butternut, Wisconsin - that made Connor Forest Industries the lion of the forest products industry. It was Mr. Connor who first strategized Northern Flooring and Door, as well as, Connor Hardwood Inc. With his engineering background, Gordon P. Connor was instrumental in the creation of new systems for the Connor Forest Industries and was involved in the acquisition of several of Connor’s patents. It was Mr. Connor’s marketing and engineering ideas that brought Connor’s “continuous strip” and “iron bound” to market. With the acquisition of many key patents by Mr. Connor during the 60’s and 70’s, Connor Forest Industries became the market leader in sports flooring.
Gordon P. Connor was CEO of Connor in its heyday. With a strong sales team, G. P. Connor would come to perhaps be the best known name and the name most synonymous with sports flooring. In the mid 80’s, Connor, in its fourth generation, and with over 211 share holders, ultimately sold. Gordon P. Connor and his immediate family held on to the Wisconsin timberlands and the mill in Laona, Wisconsin. The Connor family had a ten year non-compete on hardwood flooring. The Connor family, led by Peter Hamilton Connor, G.P. Connor’s son and the fifth generation member of the Maple Flooring Manufacturers Association, founded W•D Flooring in the late 90’s. Gordon P. Connor remains valuable council to W•D Flooring.
Over the years Gordon P. Connor has been extremely active in politics and the forest products industry. He has influenced many important legislative issues as they relate to the forest products industry over his lifetime.
Gordon P. Connor has served and many boards including the National Kitchen Cabinet Manufacturers Ass. 1970-1978, National Hardwood Lumber Association 1978-1982, Lake States Lumber Association 1995-2000, The Pinchot Institute 1998-2004, Peoples State Bank 1987-2009, Advisory Board University of Wisconsin Agriculture and Life Sciences 1990-1996, Athletic Advisory Board UW 1992-2002, University of Wisconsin Medical School 2002-2005, and founded the Court Preservation Association.
Connor is an active tennis and squash player, and avid fishing and hunting enthusiast, a Birkebeiner cross country skier, as well as, a downhill skier and world traveler. He is father of four children, and married 46 years to his Norwegian wife, Sigrid Irlin Connor.