Never Let Financiers Renegotiate at the Altar

“On the evening of Saturday, August 24, the four Couche-Tard founders found themselves at Bouchard’s home, sharing a nice meal to celebrate the start of the pan-Canadian adventure that was opening up before them. Now they had to plan their implementation schedule. In the middle of dinner, Fortin’s telephone rang. It was his contact at the Caisse de Dépôt. There was good news and bad news. The institution’s credit committee had agreed to finance the operation, but on the condition that it would raise Couche-Tard’s interest rates. Fortin swiftly took a hard stance, even though it risked scuttling the deal. There would be no question of renegotiating the agreement in principle that had been reached. If the Caisse didn’t stand by it, their word meant nothing. When the call ended, the mood at the gathering had lost its sparkle. If the financiers didn’t back down, they would have to abandon the project. Bouchard and Fortin would be flying to Toronto the following day. They had hoped they would be presenting their surprise offer to Silcorp’s president—who still knew nothing of their plan—on Monday. It was good that he was unaware, given the new circumstances. Would the meeting even come to pass? Fortin spent Sunday morning pacing at home, waiting for the telephone to ring. Had his refusal to allow the Caisse to change the deal at the last minute pushed the powerful financial institution into backing down, or made them dig in their heels? The answer came before noon: The initial agreement would be respected. They had the green light to start the acquisition process. It had been a close call, but their plan was still on track.”

““They both said the deal was the best thing that ever happened to them in their career, and they encouraged me to give it a try.” Hannasch asked them why they thought so. The answer: because Couche-Tard management did what they had said they would do, they told him. They invested in the stores, took care of their people, worked to grow the business. And, they told him, since the company had acquired Silcorp, Couche-Tard’s management hadn’t broken its word—not once. “They’re four very humble guys with a vision of growing and doing the right thing,” said the two men, who added that in the business world, that’s “very refreshing.””