Joe Johnson

Serial Entrepreneur

Joe Johnson

Serial Entrepreneur
Joe Johnson

JOE'S BIO

Dr. Joe Johnson, is an entrepreneur, investor and start-up expert.

Joe Johnson, PhD is a serial entrepreneur who has worked and studied the field of entrepreneurship and organizational leadership for over 25 years.

Dr. Johnson is the architect, founder and owner of the Welfont Companies, which was recently recognized by Entrepreneur Magazine as the 11th Best Entrepreneurial Businesses in America measuring innovation, growth, leadership, impact, and business value in 2019 and 20th in 2018 in their annual Entrepreneur360 List. Further, Entrepreneur Magazine recognized Welfont as the #1 Best Entrepreneurial Real Estate Brokerage in America both in 2018 and 2019, and featured Johnson in an article entitled: How to Spend Less Time in the Office and Make More Money.

In 2018 and 2019, Inc Magazine recognized Welfont as the 16th and 31st fastest growing business in America, the #1 fastest growing real estate brokerage business in the history of the Inc. 5000 ranking and named Johnson as an All-Star Entrepreneur. In 2018, Welfont had a 3-year revenue growth rate of over 11,300%.

The Welfont Companies is the ONLY company in America to make the Top 50 in the Inc Magazine’s Inc. 5000 and Entrepreneur Magazine’s Entrepreneur 360 List in both 2018 and 2019. To top it off, in 2019, CIO LOOK Magazine named Johnson as their Entrepreneur of the Year and featured him in an article entitled, Joe Johnson: Record Setting Real Estate Startup.

However, in early 2019, Johnson  stepped down from the day-to-day operations of Welfont but remained as a shareholder so he could focus on his next business venture: OXLOS, which launched in 2020.

OXLOS is part of Johnson’s lifelong dream.  OXLOS is focused on the education industry, where he hopes to lead a massive disruption in the industry, especially since it’s way overdue.  He hopes to return again to the Inc. 5000 in a few years, but this time with a different company in a different industry.

Additionally, he has over a dozen years of commercial real estate investing experience. He is also the owner of GoodField Inc., a single-family office he has structured to more effectively and efficiently create, fund, manage, grow, and preserve his family’s entrepreneurial ventures and other investment opportunities.

Johnson earned a Ph.D. in Entrepreneurial Leadership from Regent University and an MBA from Ashland University. He has spent the majority of his adult life studying how to effectively lead organizations with a specialty in high performance entrepreneurial startups.

Earlier in his career Johnson spent a great deal of time consulting or acquiring troubled companies that were nearly insolvent in attempt to turn them around, including Success Magazine and Get Motivated Seminars. Towards the later part of his continued career, Johnson has spent most of his time investing and scaling high-growth startups.

He is also a firm believer in the principle: “if at first you don’t succeed, try again”.  As part of his entrepreneurial career, Johnson has experienced multiple business failures but bounced back after trying again.

Most importantly, Joe Johnson is a diehard Jesus follower, a devoted husband and father of six mostly teenage children, which keeps him very busy.

When not working, Joe is probably enjoying time with his family and friends, training for a triathlon, spearfishing in the Gulf of Mexico, traveling, or researching new opportunities.

Career Highlights:

  • As a born entrepreneur, Dr. Johnson’s first startup experience was a landscaping company, complete with industrial equipment and several employees, even before he was old enough to drive.
  • At age 24 and fresh out of college, he was brought in as CFO of a $12 million insolvent technology company. He was promptly promoted to CEO and led a highly successful turnaround.
  • In his early 30s, Dr. Johnson started SUCCESS Magazine by relaunching a formerly bankrupt magazine with a new team. After winning the “Best Design Launch of the Year Award” and gaining over 500,000 in print circulation, it was subsequently sold for millions of dollars.
  • Over his real estate investing career, he has invested in over 10 million square feet of commercial real estate throughout the country.
  • As an entrepreneur and investor, Dr. Johnson has helped launch or funded over a dozen startups, mainly in small and high-growth companies, as well as led, negotiated, and managed multiple mergers, spin-offs, acquisitions, and exits.
  • Raised over $100 million in investment capital consisting of debt, equity, and other creative financing methods for his own ventures and investments.
  • He has funded over 15,000 microloans in over 80 countries.
  • Started and built the #1 fastest growing real estate brokerage in the history of the Inc. 5000 and #16 overall in 2018 and #31 in 2019.
  • Recognized by Entrepreneur Magazine as the 11th and 20th Best Entrepreneurial Business in
    America in 2019 and 2018, and #1 in the real estate brokerage category for both years.
  • Named by Inc Magazine as an All-Star Entrepreneur.
  • Named Entrepreneur of the Year by CIO LOOK Magazine.
  • Tampa Bay Business & Wealth Magazine cover story featured Dr. Johnson on how he finds success through trials and tribulations.
  • Before completing his MBA at Ashland University as captain of the swim team and scholar athlete, he attended Ohio State University where he was a member of THE Ohio State swim team.
  • He is an US Master’s swimmer, becoming YMCA Master’s Nationals champion in the 50 Yard Fly in 2016, and qualifying for the Swimming World Master’s Championship (FINA).

COMPANIES

MY STORY

If at First You Don’t Succeed, Try Again

Working as a child

Swimming for Ohio State

Scaling my first startup

Facing my first startup failure

Getting married to my best friend

Graduating with my MBA

Turning around a $12 million insolvent tech company

Building a media startup

One of my first commercial real estate deals

Award winning Success Magazine staff

Bad timing with new real estate startup

Truly blessed in the midst of a startup failure

Working on my PhD

Made millions buying an insolvent company

Lost millions investing in another troubled company

Launching another startup

Funded thousands of microloans

Earned my PhD in Entrepreneurial Leadership

Welfont grows over
11,000% in 3 years

Welfont shatters records in
Inc. 5000

Entrepreneur of the Year

Launched OXLOS

JOE’S PERSONAL LIFE

FAMILY AND FRIENDS

TRAVEL

SPORTS

ON THE WATER