One of the country’s richest lumberman, Tolko president Al Thorlakson, stepped down Thursday as president of the company formed more than half a century ago by his father.
Thorlakson, 70, is being replaced by his son, Brad Thorlakson, maintaining the family grip on the Vernon-based forest company into the third generation.
He built Tolko into one of the largest private forest companies in the country, certainly the largest in the West, with revenues of $1.5 billion and 3,500 employees. Tolko has operations in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba.
Thorlakson never acted or dress like a business tycoon, and has been described by his fellow chief executive officers as an ordinary guy in ordinary clothes who keeps to himself.
He lives a modest life sticking close to his home, located in a subdivision in the ranch country of Coldstream, near Vernon. He avoided the news media during his career and issued one short statement Thursday on his decision to step down.
“Knowing that Tolko is getting through this unprecedented downturn in relatively strong shape certainly contributes to my comfort in stepping down at this time,” he said in the news release.
Thorlakson is to remain active in the company as executive chairman of the board.
Successor Brad Thorlakson has been in the company since 1978 and heads Tolko Marketing and Sales. Ltd.
B.C. Forests Minister Pat Bell described Thorlakson and Tolko as “a made-in-British Columbia success story.
“Throughout his lengthy career with the company, Al Thorlakson has always acted with honour and integrity,” Bell said in a news release.