An unmistakeable glint shines in Marc Lafrance's eye as he tells how his grandfather, Adelaird, would make the arduous trek up the Pagwa River during the First World War to purchase raw furs in Fort Albany.
Trappers from all over Hudson and James Bay would bring furs to trade, and after leaving behind some supplies, the founder of the now 100-year-old Lafrance Furs would paddle back to Pagwa, 35 kilometres west of Hearst, with a couple of dozen scows laden with bounty.
Such expeditions represent the true beginnings of the company now headed up by Marc, who at 67 still minds the Sudbury shop every single day alongside his wife Claire and a handful of employees.
A third-generation furrier, Marc insists on carrying on the tradition laid out not only by his grandfather, but also by his own father, Edward, who helped with the business after it moved from their home in Chapleau to Sudbury in 1921.
In time, the reach of the family biz stretched across region, with other stores opening in North Bay in 1946 and Sault Ste. Marie in 1952. As a result, the Lafrance family were soon manufacturing, selling, repairing and storing fur coats throughout the North.
It was so successful that Marc's uncle, Lawrence, finished serving in the Aleutian Islands for the Canadian Army in the Second World War, and then came back to help with the business.
It's a story of returning to one's roots that Marc can understand, having repeated it himself. After spending his high school summers helping to run the shop and accompanying drivers on deliveries, he broke from the family trend and went on to become a commercial pilot.
Often conducting bush flights, he would frequently fly trappers in and out of remote areas for trapping season, often with their families and loads of supplies: sugar, lard and the like in tow.
In a back office at his unassuming Lasalle Blvd. location, he leans forward in his chair, his tie rumpling slightly under his sweater as he speaks of the great respect these trappers have for the land.
"The work they do is necessary to keep the animal population under control, and they know their area well enough to know what's too much so they really are stewards of the land," he says. "A lot of people don't know that they take really good care of the area and are really careful about what they do."
After 10 years in the skies, Marc decided to step out of the plane and plant his feet firmly in the family business in 1973. He hasn't looked back since.
Over time, as members of the Lafrance clan passed away or retired, their stores were closed down, though Marc still stands aloft the sole remaining outlet as a broad-smiled patriarch.
Locations may be gone, but the memories still remain. Lafrance says that even though the Sault store shut its doors in 1984 and the North Bay location closed a decade later, people all over the North still seek out the company to this day.
The depth of history has also been afforded to the Lafrance family, which has witnessed endless changes in styles, trends and attitudes as fur went from a near necessity at the turn of the 20th century to a modern luxury. The strong rise in popularity of fur through the late 1970s led to a surge of equally strong anti-fur sentiment in the 1980s.
"People were even afraid to wear fur after a while," Lafrance says.
Diving occasionally into a well-practiced sales pitch on fur value, Marc is clearly passionate and enthusiastic about the many innovations the industry has seen to make the product more lightweight.
Such efforts have begun to draw interest from younger generations, though whether his own children may show similar interest in the family business is another story.
With children of his own who have grown up and pursued successful careers, Marc wistfully wonders whether one of them may decide to follow in his footsteps and consider taking up the family mantle.
Quick Questions to Marc Lafrance
What's the best advice you've ever received?
The best advice about business I got from my father, and he said always be honest with your customer. Always be honest about the work you have to do and the price you have to charge. Even if you think, "Gee, I could really get a good dollar for this," be fair. They'll always come back to you. That's what we've done and consequently we've been blessed with repeat customers.
What's been your biggest challenge?
The economy, one way or another, is the biggest of all challenges because you flow with it and can't do anything to change it. Especially as it is right now, with what's going on, people right away feel like they need to hold off.
What's been the biggest surprise?
I think the biggest surprise is that through the anti-fur and all of those years, the fur industry is coming back and the young people are coming back to it. That's been a real pleasant surprise.
What have you learned the most?
Do a good job and you're happy with your work. When you do something properly and it's done and the customer likes it, boy, you can't wait to come to work the next day.
What's the secret to success?
Working hard and giving the customer what they want, listening hard to your customer.
