At 94, the Saskatchewan-born businessman is still the head of the Jim Pattison Group, the private holding company he founded in 1961 when he bought a gas station with a very modest concession. GM automobiles.

Six days a week, Jim Pattison travels to his downtown Vancouver office to oversee portions of his empire, which serves no fewer than 43 different companies or brands across eight key practice areas.

In addition to operating more than 20 car dealerships and 18 John Deere tractor dealerships, Jim Pattison owns a chain of 45 radio stations, an advertising display company, 20 packaging products factories, the grocery chain Save-on-Foods (180 outlets) and other fishing activities – and forest sector.

The Jim Pattison Group employs more than 40,000 people, primarily in Canada and the United States, and had sales of nearly $15 billion in 2021.

“I come to the office every day except Sundays when I go to mass before I go to work at home. I have no merits, I like what I do, I like working,” the Canadian billionaire tells me during a video conference interview, in which he gave an update on his holdings at the end of the pandemic.

“We got through the pandemic well, we came out of it stronger, especially with our forestry activities, which have benefited from the solidity of prices,” emphasizes the entrepreneur.

Indeed, among the companies it controls, the Jim Pattison Group owns more than 51% of the shares of the forestry company Canfor, which operates in the western part of the country and in the United States, while in the west it holds a stake of more than 10% in Fraser Timber, two Canadian forestry heavyweights.

“With our interest in Westshore Terminals Investment, a coal transit port, these are our only investments in public companies, all other companies are private,” said Jim Pattison.

The return on investment

What prompted the entrepreneur to get involved in so many fields of activity?

“As a car dealer, I bought a lot of advertising. This led me to buy my first radio station. We also founded a car and truck rental business at the time, which has grown rapidly.

“Since everyone needs to eat, I decided to buy a chain of 17 grocery stores that were poorly managed. Today it is a company with more than 20,000 employees,” adds the iconic businessman in English Canada.

In addition to working in the office six days a week, Jim Pattison visits his 43 companies or offices four times a year across Canada and even abroad. Every year he receives the 178 managers of his various companies to review their activities.

He also drives his 2020 Dodge Ram to visit the 18 John Deere dealerships on the road between Vancouver and Regina, stopping at Save-on-Foods supermarkets along the way.

He also comes to Montreal four times a year to meet with the management of his companies involved in vehicle rental and signage.

The entrepreneur is the focus

Jim Pattison acquired the Claude Néon company in 1979, operating under the Pattison name. Group manufactured illuminated signs and billboards that can be found on roadsides in the Quebec countryside today.

“We also have Genpak food packaging plants in Quebec,” adds the CEO of the conglomerate.

In the food business, the group also owns the Canadian Fishing Company, which operates a fleet of 700 fishing boats cruising the coasts of British Columbia and Alaska. The group also includes Ocean Brands, which markets seafood products.

Finally, Jim Pattison has a penchant for the unusual, owning the Guinness World Records franchise and Ripley’s Believe It or Not, which operates 29 museums of the unusual around the world.

“I received a call from a franchisee asking them to buy the worst managed company in the world. I agreed and we make money with it. My son is the president of this Orlando-based company,” explains Jim Pattison.

How do you live as a multi-billionaire? How do we use it?

Aside from his luxurious 150-foot yacht, which is moored at Coal Harbor Marina, Jim Pattison says he doesn’t adore wealth too much.

“I have the same house as when I started my business career. I drive a Dodge Ram and my goal is to grow my business and enable my foundation to donate to hospitals in Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Regina, Winnipeg and Montreal, among others,” he sums up.