Under José Boisjoli's leadership, BRP has diversified its product lineup, added thousands of workers and quadrupled its stock price.Daniel Ehrenworth/The Globe and Mail
José Boisjoli has long bucked the trend that shows chief executives are lasting less and less time in the top job.
Later this week, the chairman and CEO of BRP Inc. DOO-T will retire after 22 years at the wheel of the Canadian Ski-Doo and Sea-Doo maker, making way for former Renault Group executive Denis Le Vot. Mr. Boisjoli has led Valcourt, Que.-based BRP since its split from Bombardier Inc. in 2003.
The average outgoing tenure for a CEO leading an S&P/TSX Composite Index-listed company is 6.6 years, according to the latest data from Russell Reynolds Associates. Mr. Boisjoli led BRP for more than three times longer – a fact perhaps linked in part to the company’s history as a family enterprise, said Alaric Bourgoin, a specialist in CEO dynamics at Montreal’s HEC business school.
The Bombardier-Beaudoin family founded the company and control it through multiple-voting shares, together with Bain Capital and the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec.
“Family businesses tend to manage for the long term. They extend investment horizons, value stability and favour continuity and internal promotion – conditions that can naturally support longer CEO tenures,” Mr. Bourgoin said.
Born on a farm in Wickham, Que., Mr. Boisjoli grew up riding snowmobiles and motocross bikes. He’s shaped BRP into the $8-billion company it is today through “disciplined execution” of a “strategic vision” that has created significant value for all stakeholders, according to Barbara Samardzich, the lead independent director on BRP’s board.
Under his watch, BRP has diversified its product lineup, added thousands of workers and quadrupled its stock price while taking market share from rivals. The Globe and Mail spoke to the outgoing CEO about the past and future.
Mr. Boisjoli inside the company's research and development plant in Valcourt, Que., in 2019.Christinne Muschi/The Globe and Mail
Why did you decide that now was the time to retire?
I always said to the board, ‘I don’t want to talk about it before 65.’ After 65, they told me: ‘Let’s talk about it at least twice a year. Just a five minute discussion, but let’s talk.’
I will turn 69 in April. I try to take care of myself, but I don’t know. The other thing is we’ve been through a rough patch, but I’m leaving the company in very good shape. Today, one of every three products in powersports sold in the world has a BRP logo on the hood. The company is profitable, the years ahead are good. It’s a question of age and timing, as simple as that.
What are the most important things that you did to get the company to this point?
When we became BRP on Dec. 18, 2003, we were the smallest player in the industry. To be honest, it was a shock for us that we were put up for sale. But I remember I said to the employees, ‘This is our chance to prove to the world that we can be successful on our own.’
The strategy we put together at the time was quite simple. We said let’s diversify our product portfolio – products for every season. Let’s make sure we have the best products out there. If we do that well, we will be able to sign the best dealers in the world. And when the volume grows, we will expand our manufacturing footprint in strategic locations.
So, we pushed technology and innovation. We went from three product lines to seven. Now we’re selling in 130 countries. We have 2,700 dealers. And our sales grew from $2.5-billion to $8.5-billion, roughly. Along the way, we developed a very competitive manufacturing footprint between our factory here in Valcourt, the United States and Mexico, and the two we have in Europe.
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How do you see the competition in the powersports industry evolving? Who have you been watching the most?
It depends. In watercraft, it’s the Japanese. In off-road, it’s an American [rival]. And also, there is the same phenomenon in our industry that you see in automotives: China is coming in with different products.
At the end of the day, competition forces everyone to get better. You cannot sleep one minute. You need to be on the notch all the time and you need to push. We’re pushing technology, we’re pushing innovation.
Are there any things that you wish you had accomplished? Any missed opportunities?
We didn’t succeed in marine. I still think that our strategy was good, but it’s a question of timing and execution. We acquired Manitou and Alumacraft in 2018, Telwater and Quintrex in 2019. And we knew that those small businesses needed help to bring the product to the next level.
COVID hit, and we could not travel for a year-and-a-half, two years. We were doing product development through video call. And when we were somewhat ready, the market started to slow down in the marine business. And at the end, when the situation was tougher in 2024 and 2025, we decided to sell those businesses.
Mr. Boisjoli was born on a farm in Wickham, Que., and grew up riding snowmobiles and motocross bikes.CHRISTINNE MUSCHI/Reuters
How do you see the future of the powersports industry in terms of a potential conflict with environmental concerns?
Regulations are always getting tougher, but we find ways to meet them. At the end of the day, we’re selling the product, but we’re selling the experience, too. I think powersports will exist forever, because for many customers, it’s their way of life. Day-to-day, it’s work, and over the weekend and during their vacation, they’re enjoying the product. Last week, I was in Europe and then I ended up in Dubai. I was riding a snowmobile in Finland on Wednesday at -20 degrees. And on the Friday, I was riding a side-by-side in plus 25. That’s incredible.
What happens if U.S. tariffs start to apply on Mexican and Canadian goods that are currently compliant under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement? Does the BRP business model fall apart or can you make it work?
We’re not unique. All the original equipment manufacturers in the powersports industry have a different reality. Many of the Japanese assemble in U.S., but all their components are coming from Japan and they pay the tariffs. Many of our competitors followed us to Mexico. We’ve been in business for 70 years. We’ll find ways to figure it out. That’s why I’m not losing sleep over tariffs – I never did.
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What do you make of some of the comments by analysts who said they expected a company insider to be your successor?
We have a very competent board. They followed a very, very rigorous process and they selected Denis. Denis is an experienced executive and he will be surrounded by a strong team. He has a lot more experience than me at the international level. He has more experience in Europe, in Africa, where we don’t really have any business, and Asia. He brings a different set of skills, different expertise and I’m sure he will find his way.
Are you really retiring? What do you plan to do with your time?
I don’t even remember what it is to have nothing in the agenda. I was lucky to do this job, but you need to be available 24-7. That’s nature of the beast. I just want to take a few months to digest a bit, and after that, I will see. But for sure, I will be active in a different way. Probably not as a CEO, but a different way. And I want to enjoy life a bit more.
Not having an agenda, do you find that liberating?
It’s scary. During the holidays, I started to build what I would do in February, March, April, May, June. My wife said: ‘Time out. We don’t need to schedule a year in advance what we will do. We’ll figure it out.’
Let’s go schedule a snowmobile ride?
Oh, that’s in the plan – that’s for sure.
This interview has been edited and condensed.