Profile
A Model Entrepreneur
This year's John Leslie Award winner, Fernand Fontaine, FCGA, has based both his life and his successful business on innovation, quality, and strong values.
FROM:
SEP-OCT 2004 ISSUE | BY
PIERRE DURAND
Aborn entrepreneur, Fernand Fontaine, FCGA, saw the CGA designation as key to launching his career and his business, Dutailier International, which last year had approximately
900 employees and sales of nearly
$100 million. When Fontaine learned that he had received the prestigious
John Leslie Award, he first expressed surprise, and then quickly redistributed the honours onto everyone who has worked with him to make Dutailier the respected business that it is today. This willingness to share the credit — and the spotlight — is not at all surprising to those who know him.
The CGA-Canada Board of Directors established the John Leslie Award in 1988. Named after
CGA-Canada's founder and first president, the award honours CGAs whose exceptional achievements have raised the profile of the CGA designation in Canada. The award is given to only one person each year, although not necessarily every year. In fact, Fontaine is the first person to receive the honour in
three years. The most recent recipient was
Luc Provencher, FCGA, in 2001.
A True Visionary
A straightforward man with a contagious smile and legendary energy, Fontaine is seen by his close associates as a visionary. He is down-to-earth and a keen observer of client expectations and market prospects.
One of his strengths is his ability to translate the latest innovations that he sees each year at the influential Milan Furniture Fair into constant improvements to his internationally-famous Dutailier glider rockers. Sold in
North America and Europe, these gliders are outstanding for their comfort, durability, and design. His eye for innovation is also reflected in the way he has surrounded himself with talented people who have stayed with him for decades and are key to securing both the
long-term viability of the business and the personal growth of employees.
Roch Bilodeau, vice-president of Finance, Administration, and Human Resources at Dutailier, has worked with Fontaine for almost
20 years. He comments, "
Mr. Fontaine's company stands out from the competition for the geometry, mechanics, and finish of the Dutailier glider and also for the company's human resources and corporate policies, which are unique and effective." Bilodeau adds, "From the outset, he understood that the business had to focus on the American market, which now generates
75 per cent of our sales, and then on the European market, for diversification. His strategy has always been to stay several steps ahead of the game, and now he is responding to fierce competition from Asia by expanding product lines and focusing on innovation and quality."
According to Luc Provencher, Fontaine's business partner when Provencher was
vice-president of the Business Development Bank of Canada, "
Fernand Fontaine is the perfect model for entrepreneurial CGAs. He is an outstanding entrepreneur, methodical and intuitive as the situation requires, and he is always wholeheartedly committed to everything he undertakes." So convinced is Provencher of his colleague's remarkable qualities that he sponsored Fontaine's nomination for the
John Leslie Award.
Fontaine recalls the commitment it took to obtain his designation. "I completed the program in night courses over five years, at a time when I had young children and a demanding career, he says. I persevered because I knew that the CGA designation was worth all the effort that I was investing in it," he adds. "And since then, I have always been proud to support and promote CGAs." Over the years, he has proved to be one of
CGA-Quebec's most fervent and loyal supporters. In recognition of that support, the Association made him a Fellow in 1992.
The Entrepreneurial Calling
Fontaine comes from a family of farmers and merchants in
Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec. When he was
six years old, he played at being manager of a farming
co-operative with his sisters. He would record transactions and issue invoices that his sisters would pay using Monopoly money. Was this a sign of things to come? Many were surprised when, at only
20 years of age, he was named executive director of a local farming
co-op, the Société coopérative agricole de La Présentation.
After juggling the responsibilities of work and the CGA program at the Université du Québec à
Trois-Rivières and becoming a CGA in 1976, Fontaine wondered if he had what it would take to manage his own business as well as the
co-op. He talked it over with his wife and for a while, they spent their Saturday afternoons touring plants and industrial areas, much as other couples look at new homes. In 1977, Fontaine became a shareholder of Boiseries
St-Pie, and in 1978 he devoted himself
full-time to the business, buying out his partner and changing the company name to Dutailier, which is made up of the first syllable of his partner's name
(Gilles Ducharme), the second syllable of his own name, and the last syllable of mobilier, (French for furniture).
It was the beginning of a great adventure. In 1978, Dutailier had about
20 employees. To survive, it combined the manufacture of wood components with the production of lawn swings and prototypes of its famous glider rocker. Now the business offers state-of-the-art glider rocking comfort on several continents.
"We have seen periods of tremendous growth, with our sales increasing by
50 per cent from one year to the next over several years," says Fontaine. "On top of major internal growth, we have, over the years, made a few acquisitions in Quebec as well as in Martinsville, Virginia, and Hillsboro, Texas, in order to gain a solid foothold in our main market — the
United States. And in our plant in Perivale on the outskirts of London, we manufacture products for our markets in the
United Kingdom and Europe."
In 2003, Dutailier acquired Industries de Meubles E.G., a
well-known Quebec company that exports
high-end furnishings for infants and children, primarily to the U.S. market. Since new parents account for a large segment of glider rocker sales, this acquisition represents considerable synergy and an opportunity for cross sales in a new distribution network.
A Family Man
In his projects, Fontaine has always taken family into consideration. This includes the families of his clients as shown by the acquisition of a manufacturer of children's furniture and his employees' families: "If a meeting is running late,
Mr. Fontaine often checks to make sure it will not interfere with our family plans," says long-time associate Bilodeau. And of course, his own family is also key.
Fontaine and his wife, Monic Berthiaume, are a close couple who work as a team. "When I went into business, it was clear that I would have limited free time during the first few years... and even today, now that I think about it," says Fontaine with a smile. "We agreed that Monic's priority would be the children, who all work for Dutailier now. In fact, having long been my logistics person and my number-one advisor, my wife even became a major supplier by buying, on her own, a warehouse that has been used as a Dutailier distribution centre for several years now."
Fontaine's sons Bruno and David and his daughter Dany all work for the family business, each in a specific area, but they don't get special treatment at Dutailier. They work and advance on their own merits. "Everybody knows them well," adds Bilodeau, who is Dany's supervisor. "But everybody also knows that Mr. Fontaine has too much respect for his staff to stand for favouritism." And respect is the cornerstone of the harmonious labour relations between Dutailier and its employees, most of whom are unionized.
A Constant Commitment
Generous with his time and his money, Fontaine is a staunch supporter of CGAs and other groups. He regularly sponsors CGA events and has even shared the management charts developed in his own business with all CGAs by collaborating with the authors of
Performance Indicators, a book published in the Financial Performance Series by CGA-Quebec.
An important player in the furniture sector in Quebec, he has served the Quebec Furniture Manufacturers' Association as its treasurer, chair, and fair authority. During the NAFTA negotiations, he even defended the association's brief on the Agreement before Parliament; at the time, a burning issue for furniture manufacturers.
Having personally devoted considerable energy to education, Fontaine recognizes its importance. That is why his company contributes generously to the École des Hautes Études Commerciales (HEC), so much so that one of the rooms in the HEC's newest building is named after Dutailier.
Chambers of commerce — especially the one in Saint-Hyacinthe — benefit from his boundless energy and original ideas. And the health care sector also benefits. Recently, the Saint-Hyacinthe hospital was battling a severe contamination problem and found unwavering support and generosity in Fontaine. Both Dutailier and Fontaine's many friends and associates have made donations of time and money, and in kind. For example, at both the Hôpital Sainte-Justine and Ronald McDonald House in Montreal, parents comfort their seriously-ill children in Dutailier gliders.
"When I sponsored his nomination for the John Leslie Award, I was thinking of both the private man, who is kind and respectful, and the businessman, who is honest, dynamic, and innovative," concludes Provencher. "I was happy to learn that our efforts had been successful, because in all honesty, I cannot think of anyone who deserves this honour more than Fernand Fontaine."
[
TOP ]
Pierre Durand is a partner in the Montreal-based firm, Pelican Public Relations.