Quebec retail pioneer exit strategy: Hire your successor years before you plan to go
By Bruce W. Cole
For any reader with aspirations of someday owning their own health food store, or for those of you who are starting to think about a succession plan, you might be interested in learning about this Quebec store that planned and then executed a perfect transition.
This is a story of a young man who joined the staff of a health food store in 2010 as a part-timer, worked his way up the ladder, and—14 years later—became the owner.
It is also the story of a pioneer of the Quebec natural health industry, who built a successful chain of stores over 45 years, and—with an eye to retirement—hired his replacement 14 years in advance.
The young man is Alexandre Savard, the new owner of the La Boite à Grains group of stores in Gatineau, Quebec. He took ownership of the stores in August 2024.
The pioneer is Pierre Menard, co-founder of La Boite à Grains. First in partnership, and then as sole owner, Pierre built La Boite à Grains into four full-service natural health products supermarkets around the city of almost 300,000, in addition to a substantial online store.
Looking back
He reflects to the beginning, to the early days of La Boite à Grains, to everything it took to get the store off the ground and be successful.
“In those days, we had to go pick everything up for the store. So, many times, my car was crammed with yogurt, grain, processed flour, and bread we had to get in Ottawa. We had to count the pennies if we needed to buy an extra shopping cart.
“I was 23 years old when we started. We didn’t have any coaching. We were hippies … only thinking about the Earth and health and people. The business succeeded because of that energy we put into it. There was no money in the 80s and 90s. We knew we had to make money, but it was never about money. We were fired by passion to help people. I was always learning, and I continued to learn at every step of the way.”
Continuing the legacy
After 45 years, Pierre decided the time was right to step away and let the next generation lead. It wasn’t, however, a spur-of-the-moment decision to sell the business—it was something Pierre had put much thought into and planned for 15 years.
He recalls that in 2009, while he was still in the heart of building his company, he began thinking of hiring a person who could eventually become his successor.
Within a year, he had found an excellent candidate.
Pierre was first introduced to Alexandre (or Alex) through a consultant who was doing some work for La Boite à Grains. Alex came in for an initial meeting, and three interviews later, Pierre offered him a job.
“From the first interview, I saw a bright young man, with lots of experience and a good general sense of business. He had been in the food business and touched [on] many aspects of the job. I saw potential from that point.”
This is not to say it was a done deal from the outset, clarifies Pierre. “You find a prospect; you don’t find a partner. But I always felt that Alex was being hired as my successor.”
Alex felt this opportunity was something special from the start. “I think the big connection between Pierre and myself was we had the same core values.”
Alex came on board in 2010 and recalls his start at La Boite à Grains was part time—two days a week. “My first project was to coordinate with Pierre [about] the company’s 30th anniversary and get the website up and running. It was the first version of our e-commerce.” Before long, he began managing the supplement department in two stores and getting more immersed in the operational side of the stores.
Stepping toward ownership
Pierre’s intuition about Alex was correct. “He climbed the company ladder. He was coached by everyone, and he worked in every aspect of the store.”
His work ethic, coupled with his willingness to take on any task, earned him a promotion to general manager in 2014. Two years later, the first step towards ownership of the store took place when Alex purchased 20 percent of the company.
“We discussed the next part of the plan over the years, but it was always very informal, as Pierre was still active in the business,” says Alex. “Plus, during this period, we were sidetracked a bit when we bought SOL Épicerie Santé in Aylmer. But we continued to discuss the plan. We didn’t have anything in writing, but we were always working that way—toward me buying the business.
“Eventually, things became clearer, and details were finalized. We brought the banks into the discussion because we were discussing large sums of money. Finally, the sale was concluded in August 2024.”
Building a support system
Alex has had a lot of time to get the people and the pieces in place to begin his run as owner.
“We have a solid head office team. Over the past three years, we have built a full team that knows La Boite à Grains. They have good energy. They care. They work hard. And we have a strong leadership team at store level. Our four store managers are extremely capable.
“Our online store is a true standalone business. It has its own team, solving its own unique set of challenges. We invested a lot of time to make it operational.”
Although Pierre is no longer the owner, he will still be involved with the business, explains Alex, but in a less visible yet equally important role. “Pierre has agreed to continue as a mentor and consultant. As he said, he is just one phone call away. Any questions I may have, he can answer. As the owner, I have the final decision, but I will listen to him.”
Pierre concurs with Alex’s statement. “I am still on the board of directors and will be involved on the marketing side. I’m here to help him. He is not obliged to do what I suggest. He makes last call on everything.”
Remaining dynamic
When asked about his legacy, Pierre says, “I have always lived in the present.” He takes a moment and then rephrases his answer. “Except for business matters, I always lived in the present. I never thought of my legacy. I am, however, very happy that store ownership stayed local, and the new owner is someone from the ‘inside.’ I’m so proud of all the people we helped over the years, to change their lives. I never thought I’d be here for 45 years. The store was always about what I love most. It taught me resilience in so many ways. It was like an ongoing university course. I was always learning.”
“I always hoped to have four or five stores, to really get a strong foothold in the community, and I’m proud that has been accomplished. I’ve been slowing down for a few years, as Alex has been taking on more. He’s done a good job running things. He has been doing the day-to-day for a couple of years.”
Pierre is pensive when asked what he is going to miss most about being in the store. “What I miss for sure is the business side of the day-to-day … the game of the business.”
With a team that Alex had a large hand in assembling, and systems in place that he mainly oversaw, La Boite à Grains seems positioned to make major headway into the future.
When asked about what comes next, Alex pauses, and gathers his thoughts before answering. “The future—that’s a hard one. We decided to continue to work internally on making La Boite leaner and super-efficient. We’ve invested in technology, so we are in a better position to grow. We have invested in ourselves to enable us to do that. At this time, I feel our operations and marketing are strong. I would definitely like to see new stores down the road, but we need to be strong internally before we can grow.”