Two sisters are preparing to take over from their father at the head of Desharnais Pneus et Mécanique. The two fourth-generation entrepreneurs want to make the company founded by their great-grandfather in 1949 prosper while making as much space as possible for women in a traditionally male-dominated field.
Claudia and Mélanie Desharnais always knew that they would one day take the reins from their father, Denis, at the head of the family business.
“It’s always been our project. I won’t say that there weren’t moments of hesitation or questioning, but ever since we were little, that’s what we wanted to do,” argues Claudia Desharnais, the eldest and vice-president of the company which has six service points in the greater Quebec region.
Asked whether the word retirement began to appear in their father’s vocabulary, the Desharnais sisters quickly brushed this idea aside.
“I don’t think it’s going to happen one day,” jokes Mélanie Desharnais, also vice-president. He started to slow down and enjoy life more, but he has this business tattooed on his heart and he will always be involved.
One thing is certain, the daughters of the current president are extremely grateful to him for having included them equally in the adventure launched by Philibert Desharnais, when he transformed part of his house into a gas station, 75 years ago .
“We each have our own character, but we complement each other very well and we believe a lot in teamwork. In addition, our father instilled in us the importance of surrounding ourselves well, so we have solid people on whom we can count,” notes the eldest.
“Great credibility”
To say that the two businesswomen have known what they want to do since childhood is not an exaggeration. The youngest says she started working in the office with her mother at the age of 9.
“Claudia started at 12 years old filing bills and helping our mother. I was too young to stay home alone, so I had to participate too! It wasn’t the most exciting job in the world, but we were proud to work for the company,” she says.
Claudia and Mélanie Desharnais, the two sisters vice-presidents of the company Desharnais Pneus et Mécanique in Quebec.
Photo STEVENS LEBLANC
At the age of 15, the two businesswomen joined the showroom of the Charest Boulevard branch and began selling tires and advising customers.
I was selling tires to gentlemen and I didn’t even have my license. I had never even driven a car!” says Claudia Desharnais.
“We had great credibility,” quips his sister.
“Let’s say that it built character to have to prove that we had the knowledge to overcome prejudices. […] Subsequently, we were able to explore all facets of the business, whether sales, administration or even the garage,” continues the eldest.
Place for women
One of the things that makes the Desharnais sisters very proud of their company is to count more and more representatives of the fairer sex among their employees or, as they like to call them, their “extended family”.
Out of around 200 employees, Desharnais Pneus et Mécanique employs around thirty women.
In 2012, Desharnais also created an uproar in feminist circles by launching its “pink division”, an initiative whose objective was to make women more comfortable during their visit to the garage by giving them the choice to ask to be served by another woman.
The launch of the pink division was criticized by various feminist groups in 2012.
Archive photo
To this day, the two sisters have difficulty explaining how an initiative that was intended to be noble and inclusive could be so poorly received.
“It was very misinterpreted at the time. We want to get more women working in a typically male-oriented field. There’s nothing reductive about it, quite the contrary,” maintains Mélanie Desharnais.
In transformation
It is not only within management that changes are on the horizon at Desharnais Pneus et Mécanique. The increase in the number of electric vehicles on the roads requires some adaptation on the garage floor as well.
However, the fourth-generation company says it saw the wave coming and prepared accordingly to best serve its customers.
“We have been training our staff to work on electric vehicles for years. We have workers who have their certification in all trades and we are able to manage this new reality well,” explains the younger of the two sisters.
A lot of
Who inspires you? The generations that came before us and our father, particularly. He is the one who brought the company to where it is now and we want to continue his work.
If you could change one thing in the world, what would it be…? May people show more tolerance and openness.
Entrepreneurship is…? Realize a vision by overcoming obstacles and learning every step of the way. It’s also about working as a team to exploit everyone’s strengths.
