Shri Thanedar

Shri Thanedar
Personal details
Born (1955-02-22) February 22, 1955
Belgaum, Karnataka, India
Political party Democratic
Spouse(s) Shashi Thanedar
Children 2
Education University of Mumbai (BA, MA)
University of Akron (PhD)
Website Official website

Shri Thanedar (Marathi: श्री ठाणेदार; born February 22, 1955) is an Indian-born American author and entrepreneur.[1]

He was one of several candidates in the Democratic Party primary for Governor of Michigan in the 2018 election. He came in 3rd with 17% of the votes.[2]

Early life and education

Thanedar grew up in a lower-income family in Belgaum, India. When his father was forced to retire at age 55, a 14-year-old Thanedar worked odd jobs to support his family of eight. He earned a bachelor's degree in chemistry at 18 and then attended a masters program at University of Bombay.[1] He came to the United States in 1979 to pursue a PhD at the University of Akron, which he earned in 1982.[3] Thanedar became a US citizen in 1988.

Career

Thanedar did post-doctoral work at the University of Michigan before taking a job in 1984 as a researcher at Petrolite Corp.[3]

In 1990, Thanedar took a job working nights and weekends for $15/hour at Chemir/Polytech Laboratories to learn the business. Thanedar took out a loan to buy Chemir in 1991 for $75,000. Sales in the first year were $150,000 and the business had three employees. By 2005, Chemir's revenues were $16 million and it employed 160 people, including 40 PhD chemists.[1]

Thanedar borrowed $24 million from Bank of America to finance seven acquisitions, offering the bank a personal guarantee to back the debt.[4] One acquisition, Azopharma, grew rapidly from $1 million in 2003 to $55 million in 2008.[5] Thanedar's group of companies employed 500 people in 2008.[4]

During the 2007–10 recession in the United States, Azopharma's revenue fell by 70 percent, triggering bankruptcy proceedings by Bank of America.[5] Azopharma was closed and its assets were sold for $2 million.[4] During the bankruptcy proceedings, AniClin, one of Azopharma's research facilities of which Thanedar was the sole owner, was abruptly closed; caretakers had to climb walls to feed the laboratory animals held inside, including beagles and non-human primates, until they were rescued by animal welfare organizations.[6] Thanedar publicly denied responsibility for the treatment of the animals, saying the decisions were made by the bank, although Thanedar's attorneys had sought to have the animals assessed and sold rather than transferred to sanctuaries.[7][8] Chemir remained profitable throughout the legal proceedings and was sold on March 31, 2011 for $23 million.[9] That sale plus the combined assets in the firm covered Thanedar's debt to Bank of America.[5]

Thanedar briefly retired in 2010, then came out of retirement later that year to launch Avomeen Analytical Services, an Ann Arbor-based chemical testing laboratory, with his son Neil.[10] Avomeen was named to the INC 5000 list of fastest-growing companies in the United States in 2015 (#673) and 2016 (#1365).[11] In 2016 Thanedar sold a majority stake in the business to private equity firm High Street Capital.[12] Thanedar shared $1.5 million of his sale proceeds with his 50 employees.[13]

Thanedar was named the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year for the Central Midwest Region (Missouri, Kansas, Iowa and Nebraska) in 1999, 2007, and 2016.[14][15]

Lawsuit

In November 2017, a buyer of Avomeen Holdings LLC filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court in Detroit, claiming Thanedar made "fraudulent and misleading representations" of his company's finances in order to sell the majority stake in November 2016.[16] Thanedar denies the allegations, stating that revenues "are anticipated to significantly exceed" those of past periods.[17] Thanedar maintains 40 percent ownership of Avomeen.[13]

Political career

In 2008, Thanedar donated $2,300 to the Republican presidential campaign of John McCain, later stating that it was to ask questions about immigration policies.[18] During the 2016 presidential race, Thanedar was seen at a rally during Marco Rubio's presidential campaign.[18] In the 2016 United States presidential election, Thanedar stated that he voted for Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders.[18]

2018 Gubernatorial Primary Campaign

According to documents by political strategists obtained by Politico magazine, Thanedar initially questioned whether he wanted to run as a Democrat or Republican in the gubernatorial race. Thanedar has denied the statements, stating that he was being criticized because he did not hire their firm.[18]

On April 5, 2017, Shri Thanedar submitted paperwork to raise funds for a potential gubernatorial campaign in Michigan.[19] On June 8, 2017, Thanedar officially announced his candidacy for Governor of Michigan in the 2018 Democratic Party primary,[20] although he engaged in discussions to run as a Republican as well.[21] Thanedar has pledged not to accept any corporate political action committee donations.[22] Thanedar has contributed nearly $6 million of his own money to his campaign.[23]

Autobiographies

Thanedar has written two autobiographies. ही 'श्री' ची इच्छा ! (Pronounced: He Shree Chi Ichha; English: This Is Shri's Wish) is an autobiography written in Marathi by Thanedar that was first published in 2004. In 2008, Thanedar self-published his memoirs in English, "The Blue Suitcase: Tragedy and Triumph in an Immigrant's Life."[24]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Mccoy, Michael (2006). "C&EN TALKS WITH". Chemical & Engineering News. 84: 29. doi:10.1021/cen-v084n046.p029.
  2. ↑ "Rags-to-riches entrepreneur to launch run for governor". Detroit News. Retrieved 2018-01-24.
  3. 1 2 "Thanedar tests his way to $16 million". www.bizjournals.com. Retrieved 2018-01-24.
  4. 1 2 3 Gallagher, Jim. "Shri Thanedar succeeds in St. Louis, fails, then rises again in Michigan". stltoday.com. Retrieved 2018-01-23.
  5. 1 2 3 Gallagher, Jim. "Gallagher: Immigrant millionaire's reversal is cautionary tale". stltoday.com. Retrieved 2018-01-24.
  6. ↑ "Thanedar denies responsibility for beagles abandoned in testing lab in 2010". Detroit Free Press. 2018-04-26. Retrieved 2018-08-02.
  7. ↑ Marans, Daniel (2018-04-25). "Over 100 Dogs And Monkeys Were Rescued From Michigan Democrat's Shuttered Company". HuffPost. Retrieved 2018-08-02.
  8. ↑ Marans, Daniel (2018-04-28). "Michigan Gov. Hopeful Delayed Rescue Of Animals He Claims He Tried To Save". HuffPost. Retrieved 2018-08-02.
  9. ↑ Chemir auctioned off for $23 million
  10. ↑ "Retired from retirement, Avomeen founder works on his next boom". Crain's Detroit Business. 2013-09-27. Retrieved 2018-01-23.
  11. ↑ "Avomeen Analytical Services: Number 1365 on the 2016 Inc. 5000". Inc.com. Retrieved 2018-01-23.
  12. ↑ "Private equity firm buys controlling interest in Avomeen". Crain's Detroit Business. 2016-11-23. Retrieved 2018-01-23.
  13. 1 2 "Ann Arbor CEO surprises employees with $1.5 million in holiday bonuses". MLive.com. Retrieved 2018-01-23.
  14. ↑ 2007 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award, for the Central Midwest Region
  15. ↑ "Ann Arbor businessman Shri Thanedar to announce run for governor". 7 June 2017.
  16. ↑ Gibbons, Lauren (November 15, 2017). "Gubernatorial candidate Shri Thanedar sued over fraud claims". MLive.
  17. ↑ "Thanedar fights business fraud lawsuit as 'false'". Detroit News. Retrieved 2018-01-24.
  18. 1 2 3 4 "The Bizarro-World Trump Storming Michigan Politics". POLITICO Magazine. 24 June 2018. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
  19. ↑ Oosting, Jonathan (April 20, 2017). "Entrepreneur of year files for Michigan governor run". The Detroit News. Retrieved April 21, 2017.
  20. ↑ "Rags-to-riches entrepreneur to launch run for governor". Detroit News. Retrieved 2018-01-24.
  21. ↑ Jilani, Zaid (2018-04-18). "Why Michigan's Gubernatorial Candidate is running with no political stance". WYNC: The Intercept. Retrieved 2018-04-26.
  22. ↑ "Thanedar touts work in science in 1st ad of governor's race". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved 2018-01-24.
  23. ↑ "Top Michigan governor candidates have more than $10M to spend". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved 2018-01-24.
  24. ↑ The Blue Suitcase"Book – Shri Thanedar". shrithanedar.com. Retrieved 2018-01-24.
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