Jean Coutu

Jean Coutu opened the first PharmEscomptes bearing his name in 1969 and revolutionized the profession. Until then, pharmacists were confined to selling traditional medicines and remedies. Thanks to his marketing techniques that paralleled those of large supermarket chains, they could offer their clients a wide range of products.

Success was immediate and long-lasting. By 1992, there were more than 200 Jean Coutu pharmacies across the province. Groupe Jean-Coutu then expanded outside Quebec, with 21 pharmacies in the U.S., 8 in Ontario and 9 in New Brunswick. The company became Groupe Jean-Coutu in 1986, when it was first listed on the Stock Exchange.

Jean Coutu has always been able to count on his family to help him realize his ambitions. Three of his five children carried on in the family business: Louis, the eldest, is the company’s Marketing Director, Michel is responsible for U.S. Franchise Operations and François-Jean, a pharmacist like his father, is President and Chief Operating Officer of Groupe Jean-Coutu.

Forty years of happily married life and outstanding business success did not diminish his sensitivity to issues of social injustice. He and his wife created the Fondation Marcelle et Jean Coutu in 1990 to help the underprivileged, women and children who are victims of violence, and to combat drug use throughout the province.

His humanitarianism stretches beyond the borders of Quebec. Since 1986, the Groupe has sponsored a project called Parrainage au Mali. Thanks to the Groupe and its financial support, three villages in the West African country of Mali have been able to take their first steps toward economic self-sufficiency, mainly through reforestation and irrigation projects.

His enormous commercial success has gained him recognition in the financial and health care communities. Jean Coutu served on the Board of Directors of the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, Québecor and the Institut de la médecine de la reproduction. In the past, he held similar positions with the Institut de recherches cliniques de Montréal and the Fondation hospitalière Maisonneuve-Rosemont. In 1990, he was awarded the Velan Prize for his efforts in promoting international development. He also received the Order of Merit from the Association des diplômés de l’Université de Montréal. In 1991, he received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Concordia University.

Jean Coutu was inducted into the Academy of Great Montrealers in the Economic category in 1992 and was named a Commander of the Ordre de Montréal in 2016.

Source: Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal

The picture and biographical information appearing on this page were current at the time this person was admitted to the Academy of Great Montrealers.