Ray D. Wolfe was an innovative food industry wholesaler-retailer who transformed The Oshawa Group Limited into one of Canada’s largest distributors of food and pharmaceuticals.

Ray was born in 1917 and was introduced to the wholesale food business by his father and uncle, founders of Ontario Produce. In 1940 he joined the family operation and worked as General Manager before entering military service.

The post war years were difficult for Ontario Produce as larger grocery chains bypassed the wholesalers. In 1949 Ray offered his independent dealers a broader product line through the acquisition of distributor, Oshawa Wholesale Ltd. Two years later came a partnership with Chicago-based Independent Grocers Alliance (IGA). This alliance introduced to Canada the revolutionary idea of franchising. The move gave Oshawa’s independent owner-managers an IGA franchise that had all the advantages of the larger chains.

In 1961 Oshawa expanded further, introducing Canada’s first discount supermarket, Food City. It was the beginning of a growth period that brought acquisitions in Atlantic Canada, Quebec and west to Saskatchewan. Ray’s inventive approach to Oshawa’s ongoing challenges included entry into merchandise retailing. He introduced the Towers department stores and acquired the pharmaceutical Boots Drugmarts, now called Pharma Plus.

Ray presided over The Oshawa Group for 40 years. His sound, conservative management never lost sight of Oshawa’s central core, the wholesaler-retailer alliance. His entrepreneurial spirit was the ideal partner for independent grocers willing to carve their own niche. The Oshawa Group continues to be one of Canada’s most successful companies, with revenues in the billions.

Sonja I. Bata was born in Switzerland, where she studied architecture at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology. Marrying shoe-factory owner Thomas J. Bata in 1946, Sonja soon became actively involved in her husband’s company. Side by side, the couple succeeded in rebuilding Thomas’ late father’s organization and turning it into a globally recognized footwear business. It’s approximated that 250 million pairs of Bata shoes are sold in 60 countries annually. Sonja is also well-known as the founding chairman of Toronto’s Bata Shoe Museum.

Sonja learned the business from the bottom up. She took courses in design, pattern cutting and orthopedics, immersing herself in the development of shoe lines and marketing strategies. For a while she even ran a store in London doing everything from fitting and selling to stocktaking and accounting.

Sonja frequently accompanied her husband on business trips; this has become something of a trademark for the couple. They worked together on product development and marketing strategy. When they found a suitable location for a factory, Sonja would hire the architects and oversee the construction.

The Bata Shoe Museum was founded in 1979, and housed the large collection of traditional footwear Sonja had accumulated on her business travels. Among the 10,000 pairs belonging to the collection today are everything from ancient Egyptian sandals and Inuit boots, to shoes belonging to 20^th century celebrities such as Pablo Picasso and Elton John. Sonja has been personally involved in the purchase of each and every shoe in the collection.

Working on numerous special projects outside of the Bata Corporation, the World Wildlife Fund, Royal Military College, and Art Gallery of Ontario are just a few that have benefited from her spirit and determination. She has raised millions of dollars for numerous causes, and has assisted in improving economic, political, employment and social conditions for women.

She has received countless honours, including being named an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1983, an Honorary Captain of the Canadian Navy in 1989, and North York Chamber of Commerce’s Woman of the Year in 1992. She was the recipient of the United Nations Environmental Programme’s Silver Medal in 1982.

Now over 80 years old, Sonja hasn’t slowed down a bit. She calls her current project, the revitalization of Batawa, Ontario, “a labour of love.” The former shoe factory town was founded by her husband in the 1930s.

Sonja and her husband have four grown children, and as of 2008 she resides in Toronto, Ontario.

Thomas J. Bata was born in 1914 in Zlin, Czechoslovakia. Bata comes from nine generations of cobblers, and his induction into the business of shoemaking was early and intensive. His father established the Bata Shoe Company in the late 19^th century and was the town’s mayor as well as its number one employer. Sadly, Thomas was just a teenager when his father was killed in an airplane crash. Thomas would follow in his father’s footsteps, turning the company into one of the most well-known names in footwear worldwide.

Thomas left Europe for Canada in 1939, and chose the Trenton, Ontario area as the new centre of Bata’s manufacturing operation. The new plant was also offered to Canada’s war effort and was used for making gun mounts and precision instruments. Married in 1946, Thomas met his wife Sonja in Switzerland and soon found her to be a clever and efficient business partner. She became involved in the development of shoe lines and marketing strategies, and is the founder of Toronto’s Bata Shoe Museum.

A leading industrialist, Thomas Bata was able to transform his father’s company into a highly successful enterprise. Under his leadership, the Bata Shoe Company has sold more than 14 billion pairs of shoes; greater than the number of pairs of human feet that have walked the earth.

Mr. Bata has been a director of IBM World Trade, and an advisor to the United Nations Commission on Trans-National Corporations. He was also an Honorary Colonel of the Canadian Forces Reserve and often visited the troops in the field. Vaclav Havel, the Czech president, awarded Thomas the country’s top decoration, the Tomas Garrigue Masaryk Order. In addition, Mr. Bata was named a Companion of the Order of Canada in 1972.

is son Thomas George Bata took over the shoe company from him in 2001.

Alfred J. Billes and J. William Billes built the automotive supply company, Canadian Tire Corporation. The brothers introduced dealer-owned and operated stores, employees’ profit sharing and Canadian Tire money. Together, they revolutionized the car tire and auto parts business.

Born and raised in Toronto, Ontario, Alfred and William began their working partnership with the sharing of a paper route. After the death of their father, Alfred left school to work for the Dominion Bank; he was just 15 at the time.

Life for the brothers was very difficult, until 1922 when they pooled their resources to buy Hamilton Tire and Garage Ltd. Their merchandise included tires, auto parts and an assortment of hardware items.

In 1927 the company was incorporated as Canadian Tire Corporation Limited. “We chose Canadian Tire” Alfred explained, “because it sounded big.” Setting their sights high, the brothers published the first Canadian Tire catalogue the following year. Eighty years later, the Canadian Tire catalogue is published annually in both French and English, and is distributed to almost 9 million households.

Canadian Tire flourished during the Depression, since car owners were more likely to repair than replace their vehicles during this time. Distribution and merchandising became priorities when dealer-owned stores opened in 1934. When his brother William died unexpectedly in 1956, Alfred became President of Canadian Tire, moving the company into western Canada. Alfred remained President until 1966, and acted as a director until 1988. During his time with the company, Alfred introduced the popular Canadian Tire money.

Alfred Billes became a Member of the Order of Canada in 1976. At the time of his death in 1995, Canadian Tire was supplier to over 400 stores. As of 2008, the company claims nine out of ten adult Canadians shop at Canadian Tire at least twice a year. In addition, a Canadian Tire store is within a 15-minute drive of 85% of the Canadian population.

When asked about the success he and his brother experienced, Alfred remarked, “We started young and worked hard. You can accomplish a lot when you work hard.”

E.P. Taylor, financier, industrialist, brewer and horsebreeder.

Edward P. Taylor was born in Ottawa and developed a fascination with commerce while visiting his grandfather’s business, Brading Breweries. Following graduation from McGill University with an engineering degree, 22 year old Edward bought a small Ottawa bus and taxi company. When sold a few years later, he invested his profit into Brading and began working as a sales agent with an investment firm. After six years, Edward decided to return to entrepreneurship.

Through his on-going investments in Brading, Edward had become a board member. He used his stock and his influence to finance his entry into business by founding Canadian Breweries. Canadian gradually amassed controlling interest in several breweries including Carling, O’Keefe and eventually, Brading Breweries.

Following service as Director of Munitions Production during World War II, Taylor’s influence and his mastery at deal making would again dominate Canadian business. With Canadian Breweries as its main building block, Taylor formed Argus Corporation. Argus gained control of food chains, broadcasting, advertising and forest industry companies.

E.P. Taylor’s estate, Windfields Farms, was built on his substantial real estate holdings north of Toronto. Windfields became one of the most profitable thoroughbred breeding enterprises in North America. Its most famous colt was Northern Dancer.

E.P. Taylor shared generously his wealth and time. In 1971 he retired to the Bahamas where he remained active as a developer.

It was said of Edward P. Taylor, “the nature of the man was that he could always see what most of us couldn’t.”

J. William Billes and Alfred J. Billes built the automotive supply company, Canadian Tire Corporation. The brothers introduced dealer-owned and operated stores, employees’ profit sharing and Canadian Tire money. Together, they revolutionized the car tire and auto parts business.

Born and raised in Toronto, Ontario, Alfred and William began their working partnership with the sharing of a paper route. William studied accounting before taking a job as sales manager at the Hamilton Street Tire and Garage Company in east-end Toronto.

After the death of their father, the boys experienced some very difficult times. Their luck changed in 1922, when the brothers pooled their resources to buy Hamilton Tire and Garage Ltd. Their merchandise included tires, auto parts and an assortment of hardware items. With relocation to new premises at Yonge and Davenport came the mail order business of direct sales to the customer.

In 1927 the company was incorporated as Canadian Tire Corporation Limited. Setting their sights high, the brothers published the first Canadian Tire catalogue the following year. Eighty years later, the Canadian Tire catalogue is published annually in both French and English, and is distributed to almost 9 million households.

Canadian Tire flourished during the Depression, since car owners were more likely to repair than replace their vehicles during this time. Distribution and merchandising became priorities when dealer-owned stores opened in 1934.

Sadly, William died unexpectedly in 1956, and his brother Alfred took over as President. The company only continued to grow over the next fifty years, and as of 2008 it is said that nine out of ten adult Canadians shop at Canadian Tire at least twice a year. In addition, a Canadian Tire store is within a 15-minute drive of 85% of the Canadian population. The company’s success remains a tribute to William and Alfred’s innovation and spirit.

When asked about their success, William’s brother Alfred remarked, “We started young and worked hard. You can accomplish a lot when you work hard.”

Founder, J.M. Schneider Inc.

John M. Schneider, built J.M. Schneider Inc. into one of Canada’s leading food processors.

Born in 1859, young John helped his German immigrant father clear and cultivate their farm near Berlin, Ontario, now called Kitchener. He attended school only when farm chores permitted.

John was a salaried employee at a button factory until an injury forced him to stay home. While recuperating, the 27-year old married man decided to help out with family finances by selling sausages door to door. Made from his German mother’s country style recipe, the sausages were an instant success.

Within three years J.M. was involved full time in a meat business which had rapidly expanded from his home into a nearby factory. In 1895, several new products were offered when Schneider hired a German trained butcher. One product that became a top seller was the Wiener, made famous as the “Hot Dog” at the St. Louis Worlds’ Fair in 1904. Insistent on a product made from only the best quality meat resulted in the Schneider advertising slogan, Famous for Quality.

In 1912, a reorganization shifted the business from J.M. to his sons. New products and the quality commitment continued to expand the company into one of Canada’s leading national food processors. In 1990, J.M. Schneider Inc. celebrated its centennial.

J.M. was highly respected by his employees and within his community. He was devoted to family and church and remained a modest man despite his success.

R. Howard Webster, a master craftsman of commerce and Chairman of his family owned Imperial Trust Company.

Reginald Howard Webster was born in Quebec, the son of Senator Lorne Webster, patriarch of the family owned Imperial Trust Company. Following graduation from McGill University, Howard was given the task of solving the financial woes of Imperial’s Holt Renfrew. The assignment led Howard to Detroit and Annis Furs, a small company with excellent earnings, but too little capital. He persuaded his father to buy the company and Howard became its manager, commuting for the next 20 years between Detroit and Montreal.

Howard was 45 when he successfully outbid. E.P. Taylor and publishers Roy Thomson and Jack Kent Cooke for the Globe newspaper. For 25 years Howard was a natural at combining the responsibilities of newspaper owner and Chairman of Imperial Trust. In 1979 Thomson chain was successful in their bid for the Globe and, out of respect, Howard continued to serve as honorary Chairman.

Howard augmented Imperial’s base into oil, shipping, mining and lumber. His control and influence guided the company’s investments in real estate, Montreal’s Windsor Arms Hotel, Quebecair and Burns Foods.

An avid environmentalist, Howard funded the Wetlands Research Station in Manitoba. His great interest was sports. He was a cofounder of the Montreal Expos and spearheaded the group that founded the Toronto Blue Jays.

According to a friend and advisor, “Like a champion chess player, Howard could take on a bunch of opponents at the same time.”

Class of 1989 Albert Jean de Grandpré took a sleepy telephone company and built it into an aggressive empire that garners over a billion dollars a year in profits. Jean’s first contact with Bell was in 1964. As a well known lawyer, now in private practice, he represented the company before the Canadian Transport Commission, then Bell’s regulator. In 1966 Executive Vice President, Robert Scrivener offered him a job in the legal department.  Jean said he was interested, but only if he was guaranteed a shot at the “top job.” Scrivener agreed and at age 45, de Grandpré became Bell’s General Legal Counsel. The same year he was made a Vice President. Seven years later, he would hold the “top job.” In 1977, Bell’s international consulting arm won a billion dollar contract to help build a telecommunication system in Saudi Arabia. Consumer groups in Canada argued that the profits should be used to hold down domestic phone rates. Bell counter argued, but the CRTC ruled against Bell. In response, de Grandpré reorganized the company, making the phone business and its associated operations subsidiaries of a newly formed holding company, Bell Canada Enterprises, knows as BCE. For Albert Jean de Grandpré, the formation of BCE represented the highlight of his career. What frustrated him most was dithering. “If I have one quality,” he said, “it is decisiveness. The worst decision is the one that is never taken.”

Jack Cooper took his company, and country, to the forefront of leather goods and protective sports equipment manufacturing.

At the age of 16, Jack joined the T. Eaton Company. It was while working at the Queen Street Store that Jack approached one of Eaton’s suppliers, R.H. Cameron, owner of General Leather Goods.  He and Cameron struck a deal, and Jack ended up with a sales territory that covered the entire country.

By 1946 Jack and co-worker Cecil Weeks made an offer to take over General Leather Goods. They changed the company’s name to Cooper-Weeks Limited. Ten years later, Jack bought his partner out and pushed ahead to improve and expand the company’s line of products.

It was hockey’s growing popularity during the Sixties, however, that took Cooper to the position of the world’s leading supplier of protective equipment. Jack Cooper always took great pride in the fact that his products helped prevent serious injury.

One of Jack Cooper’s few interests outside of work was the military. During World War II, he stood in reserve with the 8^th Army Signal Corps. Today he is Honorary Colonel of the 709 Communications Regiment and an active fundraiser for the cadet movement.

John (Jack) V. Clyne was a Supreme Court Judge, a successful businessman in the forest products industry, and a loyal alumnus of the University of British Columbia.

Born in Vancouver in 1902, Jack spent his summers working as a cowboy, sawmill laborer, deckhand and placer gold miner. As an undergraduate at UBC he played leading roles in the theatre, athletics and student politics. Graduating in 1923, Clyne studied marine law in the U.K. and was admitted to the British Columbia bar at age 25.

In 1947, Clyne was appointed Chairman of the Canadian Maritime Commission and moved to Ottawa, where he oversaw the transition from war time shipping to peace time use. In 1950 he returned to British Columbia, and as a Supreme Court Judge headed Royal Commissions and Inquiries for much of his seven year tenure. He resigned in 1957 at the age of 55 to become Chairman and CEO of MacMillan Bloedel Ltd., Canada’s largest forest products company. In this role, Clyne was a vital player in elevating the financially troubled company, and transforming it into a thriving business.

Jack retired from MacMillan Bloedel in 1973, and went on to dedicate his time to numerous charities and institutions, as well as serving on several corporate boards. Clyne’s record of public service also includes the creation of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Legal Studies, as well as six years served as Chancellor at the University of British Columbia. His many honours included a knighthood in the Order of St. John in 1959 and a Companion of the Order of Canada in 1972.

Describing himself as a “Jack of All Trades,” Clyne thrived on change. “You live more vigorously,” he said, “when you’re not always doing the same thing.”