Nothing predestined Brigitte Jalbert to one day become CEO of a company. It was while looking for her professional path that she found herself, in 1986, working in the commercial packaging products distribution company that her father had founded 15 years earlier. This temporary job quickly turned into a passion to the point where, in 2011, she succeeded her father as the new CEO of Carrousel Packaging, giving herself the mandate to continue the culture of benevolence that her father had established.
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“I was 23 years old, I dreamed of becoming a photographer, I wanted to be independent, but to pay my rent and finish my studies I needed money and I decided to work for a year at Emballages Carrousel. I produced a first illustrated catalog of our products and I took a liking to the company, says the CEO.
Brigitte Jalbert believes that her career is so atypical that she decided to tell her story in a book she called The CEO who never thought she would be.
“I want to demonstrate that you can achieve your ambitions when you believe in it and that you shouldn’t let yourself be held back by fear or a lack of confidence,” explains the entrepreneur, who admits at the same time that the transition from a generation to the next has not been smooth sailing, a step she explains in detail in her book.
Emballages Carrousel was born in Longueuil in 1971 when Denis Jalbert decided to create his own company in his garage to distribute packaging products for the food sector: brown paper for meat, brown bags for groceries, labellers, etc. which he distributes to local butchers and grocery stores.
The entrepreneur quickly rented a new warehouse, then another larger one before settling in Boucherville, where Emballages Carrousel still has its main warehouse and its bread bag manufacturing plant, on the edge of Highway 20. .
Sustained growth
When Brigitte Jalbert joined the family business in 1986, Emballages Carrousel employed 25 people and achieved a turnover of 8 million.
“After a year, I decided to continue while doing a certificate in business management. I did all the jobs: customer service, purchasing, procurement, marketing, human resources.
“Then I joined the management committee. In 1997, my father sold 80% of his shares to me and three other partners, including my cousin. Together, we made a great team, the dynamic was good.
“My father really instilled a culture of caring in the company and that’s what I wanted to continue. But he began to have more and more difficulty accepting change, modifying acquired habits. We do not change something that has worked for 30 years, he said, ”explains the entrepreneur.
When she succeeded her father Denis to become president of the company in 2011, the group recorded annual revenues of 98 million and had a new warehouse in Quebec to serve the East and had just acquired a distribution in Drummondville.
“The transition has not been easy. At 75, my father was hanging on. He never wanted to sell the business when he had several offers. But he wanted to remain president and he had the impression that we no longer wanted him when we wanted him to remain in place as a mentor. He finally agreed to leave his post, but he never digested it, ”deplores Brigitte Jalbert.
The first decision of the new CEO was to prepare a team capable of taking over from her and to hire a new chief financial officer.
“We also called in consultants. We have completely reviewed the logistics of our warehouse in Boucherville. My father never wanted outsiders to come into his business. »
In 2018, Emballages Carrousel opened a new warehouse in Boisbriand to better serve its customers in the Laurentians and the North. The company now employs 430 people.
“The result is that in 10 years, our turnover has increased from 98 to 204 million. Not bad for a woman who never thought she would become president, ”says Brigitte Jalbert with a smile.
The largest independent distributor in Canada
Today, Emballages Carrousel is the largest independent distributor of packaging products in Canada and competes with the multinationals GFS and Bunzl, the latter company which tried in vain to acquire it a few years ago.
“We have more than 10,000 different products in the warehouse. We have remained very close to the manufacturers for whom we distribute the products, including the Cascades group. Over the years, we have expanded the range of products we distribute.
“We have just acquired a distributor of laundry, dry cleaning and dishwasher equipment. The food sector now represents 50% of our revenues, while industrial products represent the other 50%. This is why we use the name Carrousel rather than Emballages Carrousel”, explains Brigitte Jalbert.
For 15 years, the company has invested a lot of energy in distributing more eco-responsible products and seeking to influence its client-suppliers to do the same.
“We launched the Engagement 500 Plus initiative almost four years ago to add 500 eco-responsible products each year. [à nos stocks]. More than 60% of our products have such a designation today,” explains the president.
Brigitte Jalbert has prepared the rest of things well. Last year, she appointed her right-hand man, Michel Bourassa, the second shareholder of Emballages Carrousel, as the Group’s new CEO, during the 50and company anniversary.
“Michel is in his early forties, he is here for 15-20 years. Then I have my daughter Emmanuelle who joined us two years ago and who is progressing in the company and I have two nephews who are also growing. The company will continue to grow,” promises the president.