Willis Johnson

Founder & Chairman, Copart

Search every verified Willis Johnson interview, podcast appearance, and on-the-record quote — each transcript cross-checked by AI and human review to confirm speaker identity. Willis Johnson, founder and chairman of Copart, participated in the company's investor conference call on July 6, 2026, which was held to outline long-term strategy priorities under new CEO Jay Adair. Johnson noted that the call was the first time Copart had held a conference call between earnings releases in its 32 years as a public company. He stated that he was "very happy with where the company sitting" and that it had been "well operated," but added that to grow at a faster rate, the company would need to make changes in structure, organization, and personnel, including hiring from outside. During the call, Johnson discussed the expansion of Copart's Purple Wave division, which he said has been focused on expanding its territory sales force, primarily in the central time zone of the U.S., with plans to push to the coasts and then into secondary and tertiary markets. He said the company expects this strategy to continue through 2027. Johnson also expressed a view that "the consumer retrenchment is cyclical not structural."