Preston Henn
| Preston B. Henn | |
|---|---|
| Born |
January 20, 1931 Murphy, North Carolina |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Entrepreneur |
Preston B. Henn (born January 20, 1931) is an American entrepreneur who founded the Fort Lauderdale Swap Shop in 1963.
Henn opened what became the Swap Shop as a drive-in movie theater in 1963. He shortly thereafter decided to add a flea market. Through shrewd business practices and somewhat extravagant promotion, Henn was able to grow the Fort Lauderdale Swap Shop into one of the region's most popular tourist attractions. In 2005 Henn began making unusual decisions such as firing the facility's trademark circus act, and it was rumored he was selling the facility. Later that year he was involved in a violent altercation with a vendor he was trying to evict. Police used a taser to subdue him. Henn was subsequently sent to a mental hospital for again attempting to assault the vendor.
In 1983 Henn, along with co-drivers A. J. Foyt, Bob Wollek, and Claude Ballot-Lena drove his Porsche 935 to victory in the 24 Hours of Daytona. The following year Henn's Porsche 956 driven by John Paul, Jr. and Jean Rondeau placed second in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, just two laps behind the winning 956 of Henri Pescarolo and Klaus Ludwig. Henn, driving with Michel Ferté and Edgar Dören, failed to finish in their Porsche 962 after ignition failure while on lap 247 (Pescarolo/Ludwig covered 360 laps). Driving in the IMSA GTP class, Henn's brand new 962 was the first time the new model was raced at Le Mans. There was another Porsche 962 in the Group C class run for British team John Fitzpatrick Racing, though it was a converted 956, making the white Swap Shop Porsche the first true 962 to race at Le Mans.
...
Wikipedia