Quiet Revolution Tailwind

"A shadow on the picture, however: this new class of businesspeople lacks the financial foundations to really take off. In fact, this means that French Canadians account for barely 20% of the province’s growth, even though they represent 85% of its population. Starting in 1960, successive governments would adopt a policy of redirecting economic development in favor of Francophones. In this regard, the slogans of the Liberals hardly deceive: “Things must change!”, “Masters in our own house”… Spearheading this “revolution”: the Caisse de dépôt et de placement du Québec is tasked with supporting Quebec business projects. In such an atmosphere, the meteoric rise of St-Hubert rotisseries appears far more worthy of esteem than it did a few years earlier. In September 1966, René Léger was elected “Man of the Month” by the magazine Commerce, which devoted a long article to him. He and his wife certainly did not wait for the Quiet Revolution to build a business that, with an annual turnover of 4 million dollars, confirms a little more each day its place among the gems of new Quebec entrepreneurship. The couple nevertheless embody the successful role model of the moment. A major event will soon confirm this impression."

"Another notable change, in 1972, St-Hubert Bar-B-Q proceeded to Frenchify its corporate name: the restaurants would henceforth be called Les Rôtisseries St-Hubert Ltée. It was in the spirit of the times. Quebecers were asserting themselves in every way: politically, economically, and linguistically. The rotisseries, which grew up alongside them, were too."

"It all began with the purchase of this house in the Ahuntsic neighborhood. And then, the mortgage started weighing on the family budget. So Gisèle had the idea to return to the workforce, just to breathe a little financially and make sure her children lacked nothing. The classic scenario. Since the early 1960s, the number of married women returning to the workforce has been steadily increasing. The consumer society is running at full speed, bombarding citizens with advertising and new products. The myth of the bucolic French Canada nestled in the shadow of its church steeples is over! Aspirations are changing. Quebecers live in the age of the American dream: suburbs, bungalows, cars, TVs, leisure… nothing is denied anymore. But to satisfy these ambitions, a single family income is becoming less and less sufficient. It now falls to women to go out and earn the necessary supplement outside the home. Of course, career possibilities remain limited, especially when the original plan was to stay at home as a mom."