Carlton L. Guthrie

Carlton L. Guthrie is Co-Chairman of SPECTRA LMP LLC, a Detroit, Michigan based holding company with several automotive assembly subsidiaries. Carlton and his brother Michael are sole shareholders of SPECTRA

SPECTRA’s subsidiaries include: DETROIT CHASSIS, LLC, an assembler of running Class A RV and commercial truck chassis and located in Detroit, Michigan; DETROIT CHASSIS AVON, a Tier 1 provider of axles and tire & wheel assemblies to the medium duty commercial truck industry located in Avon, OH; and, DETROIT CUSTOM CHASSIS, LLC, a provider of custom up-fits and alternative powertrain conversions for commercial truck chassis located in Detroit Michigan.

Born in Atlanta and raised in Gary, IN, Carlton was valedictorian and president of his high school senior class.  He began his career at Harvard College where he received a BA with honors in Economics in 1974.  After a brief stint at Philadelphia National Bank, he moved to Procter & Gamble where he was selected District Salesman of the Year after only eight months.  He then returned to Harvard and received an MBA in 1978 concentrating in general management  Upon leaving business school, he worked as a management consultant, initially with Jewel Companies, the Chicago-based diversified food, drug and general merchandise distributor as an internal consultant; with McKinsey and Company’s Chicago office as a senior consultant in the firm’s Consumer Group specializing in strategic planning and mergers and acquisitions; and with James H. Lowry & Associates, a multi-office general management consulting firm as Executive Vice President and COO.

Since the 1985 acquisition of Trumark, Inc., Carlton and his brother Michael have earned several honors including Ernst & Young Michigan Emerging Entrepreneur of the Year; Supplier of the Year Award from the National Minority Supplier Development Council; Michigan Manufacturer of the Year Award from the Impressions 5 Museum, Lansing, MI, and Carlton received the Chivas Regal Extrapreneur of the Year Award.

Carlton’s current priority activities are serving on the Board of Directors of the Joyce Foundation, Chicago, IL; Founder and Board Chair, Gary Alumni Pathway to Students (GAPS) Gary, IN; and Concerned Christian Men, Chicago, IL (Board Chair Emeritus).  Other current and past activities include Board Member, Shorebank, Chicago, IL; National Board Member for the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City, Boston, MA; Advisory Board for the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, Washington, DC; Past President and Founding Member of the National Association of Black Automotive Suppliers, Detroit, MI; Founder and Board Chair of the Single Parent Family Institute, Lansing, MI; Board of Directors for the Centers for New Horizons, Chicago, IL; and Co-Founder and Board Chair of the Runners’ Club, Chicago, IL.

Carlton and his wife Dawn-Marie reside in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago, IL.  He has two children, Carille and Adam, and two grandchildren: Miles and Noelle!