François Vimard

François Vimard is currently the Chairman of the Corporation’s Board and sits on the Corporation’s Audit Committee, and Nominating and Governance Committee, the KPGP Audit Committee and KPGP Governance Committee.

Mr. Vimard is a Board member and Chair of the audit committee of Andrew Peller Ltd. and Goodfood Market Corp. He is also a Board member of GS1 Canada, a not-for-profit organization which manages the barcode standard used by retailers, manufacturers and suppliers. Mr. Vimard was also a trustee of Crombie REIT from 2014 to 2017.

Mr. Vimard has more than 30 years of experience in food retailing. He spent more than 22 years at Empire Company Limited/Sobeys Inc. which is the second largest food retailer in Canada. Mr. Vimard was Interim President and CEO at Empire and Sobeys from July 2016 to December 2016 and was previously the Chief Financial Officer from June 2007 to June 2016.

Mr Vimard has a deep understanding of the retail business, having been responsible for the technology and supply chain departments during his tenure at Sobeys. He was also responsible for the National ERP implementation and overall business process optimization as well as the implementation of a state-of-the-art automated warehousing technology.

Mr. Vimard is a Chartered Professional Accountant. He earned his Bachelor of Business Administration degree and License in Accounting Sciences from the University of Laval. He also earned a certificate at the executive program in Strategic Retail Management at Babson College in Boston, MA. Mr. Vimard is also a member and graduate of the Institute of Corporate Directors.