Renaud-Bray DeSerres | The Quebec Journal

Renaud-Bray expanded its empire beyond books and teapots thanks to the purchase of 28 stores from the Deserres family, in business since 1908.

Blaise Renaud, the book giant's boss, or Marc Deserres, the last boss of the brand founded by his grandfather Omer, did not want to comment on the transaction when it was announced in a press release on Tuesday.

“Marc Deserres is retiring today,” confirmed Renaud-Bray, who has run the family business since 1980. 500 employees of Deserres have now become employees of the Renaud-Bray Group.

The fate of these 500 people will be known after the holiday season, which the company indicates will be time to analyze Renaud-Bray's situation.

No one could have imagined that the bookstore Pierre Renaud founded in 1971 with $20,000 from his mother would become the giant it is today.

Led by his son Blaise Renaud since 2011, the Renaud-Bray group now sells much more than books, employs 2,500 people and has 91 stores, including Tuesday's acquisition.

“I'll Never Sell”

In 2016, Mark DeCeres argued in an interview Press Despite regular offers from American and Canadian investment funds, he would never sell his company.

“Retail trade is now more than 50% controlled by foreign companies in Quebec. There is no pride in buying from Quebec,” he lamented.

We have to believe that Blaise Renaud was convinced. Mark DeSerres has been looking for a buyer for some time, according to a press release Tuesday.

At the time of its promise, in 2016, DeSerres had 30 stores and aimed to open another 30. Renaud-Bray acquired 28 stores on Tuesday, including 19 in Quebec and 5 in Ontario.

If DeSerres was a major supplier of artists' materials in Canada, its expansion plans would not come to fruition. The company focused on online sales while successfully fending off the arrival of American chain Michaels in Canada.

“It's time for me to pass the baton,” Mark DeCeres said Tuesday.

Crunch-crunch-crunch

Blaise Renaud said he is pleased to integrate the Quebec company into his Quebec group.

“Our companies have many points in common: they are Quebecois, multi-generational, focused on the world of culture,” declared the entrepreneur.

This is yet another acquisition for the bookseller's son, who acquired Belvedere Distributors in 2021, Griffon Boutiques in 2020, Prolog Distributors in 2017, Olivieri Bookstore in 2016 and Archambault Stores in 2015.

With the DeSerres acquisition, its turnover is now $400 million a year, Renaud-Bray said.

Boss has no intention of consolidating the DeSerres brand with others. Renaud-Bray assures that the familiar red signal is here.

This is exactly what Blaise Renaud is buying, according to Jacques Nantel, professor emeritus at HEC Montreal and a former member of Renaud-Bray's board of directors from 1992 to 2005.

“The DeSerres brand is very strong,” summed up an expert familiar with the Renaud and DeSerres families.

The value of the transaction is unknown, but Jacques Nantel confirmed that Deserres, with its website and 28 stores, is profitable.

If Marc DeSerres chooses not to sell, he says he's leaving a company that has been able to transform itself, has successfully gone online and doesn't have huge stores that cost a fortune to run.

Renaud-Bray group in brief

• 2500 employees
• 35 Renaud-Bray stores (16 Union)
• 14 Archbalt stores (5 Union)
• 13 Griffon Shops (Non-Union)
• 28 DeSerres stores
• 1 Paragraph Store (Anglo Book Store)
• Customer service
• 3 warehouses
• 3 Distributors: Prolog, Pierre Belvedere and Lamarche Importation
• Verbeck frames

Deseres, 1908 to 2024

1908: Omer Deserres, 26, opens a hardware store at the corner of Saint-Catherine and Saint-Denis streets in Montreal.

1937: Omer's son Roger begins working for the company, expanding the stores.

1950: The first section of artistic and graphic materials appears in Déserres.

1975: Roger's son Mark starts working for the company. He is the one who turns a hardware store into an artist's material store.

1980: Mark Deserres takes control and grows the company to 30 stores, peaking in Canada.

2018: Mark's son Philippe Deserres leaves the company.

2024: Marc Deseres resigns from the sale, he chooses Renaud-Bray.