Julie and Emmanuelle Rainville have always lived outside of the box, visiting the unexpected, the unusual, even the extraordinary.
The two sisters are co-presidents of a family company in the construction sector; already there, it’s rare.
They are also mothers to four children each and Emmanuelle, at 46, is already a grandmother of six. They were raised by their father after their parents separated. Then they grew up surrounded by bricklayers. Her father recruited her in Gaspésie because Montérégie lacked them. Since they needed accommodation, he accommodated them at home. He even welcomed ex-prisoners to his table.
“Many men lived with us, it was completely atypical, but we didn’t miss anything,” says Emmanuelle about this somewhat surreal childhood.
“Growing up in such a marginal environment makes us realize that there is room for everyone, regardless of differences,” adds Julie.
partner since childhood
Even as children, the two sisters leaned on each other while their parents looked after the needs of their disabled brother. In late adolescence they went different paths; Julie studied sociology and Emmanuelle lived the family to the fullest, since at 21 she was already a mother of three children. When she wanted to go back to school, her father offered her to instead take care of purchasing at Fraco, another company he was a shareholder in that specialized in aerial platforms for construction sites.
“When I came in, I fell in love. A labor dispute broke out soon after. In human resources, I didn’t recognize my father’s culture, so I got involved in this area to implement participatory management,” recalls Emmanuelle.
Julie had told herself to stay away from construction. She dreamed of doing humanitarian work, but reality caught up with her when she became a mother while finishing high school. There was the opportunity to work at Fraco, but most of all the desire to find her lifelong teammate.
“It took me months to find my place in project management,” she recalls, and is glad to have discovered that her complicity with her sister could extend to work.
Six years ago, Julie and Emmanuelle became co-presidents. Her father feared the idea, having seen failures where two successors had been appointed. But since it was the sisters’ decision, since they were so used to working together, the opening was created.
Manage the roller coaster
“We wanted to share the leadership, support each other and at the same time never be lonely,” says Emmanuelle.
Being a couple helps them through the dizzying cycles of their business, which oscillates between scintillating growth and drastic declines in its niche market.
“We navigate storms, but being the only North American manufacturer making this type of platform helps us,” Julie says, adding that 85% of Fraco’s market is in the United States.
By the way, it’s not always easy being a woman. Machismo, unwanted advances, there are many of them. And expulsion from the boys’ club is a reality in their milieu.
“We can’t fish in an outfitter with customers. And I steal contracts from competitors who offer it. It would be fun if there were more equality,” Julie notes while considering her chance to live in Quebec, where it’s possible for women to chair a construction company.
With Fraco employees, Julie and Emmanuelle feel they are in an egalitarian environment. And like their father, they open the door to friendship with teammates.
Fraco
- Founding year: 1993
- Founder: Armand Rainville, Claudette L’Heureux
- Place of registered office: Saint Mathias sur Richelieu
- Field of activity: construction, manufacturer
- Number of employees: 186
Profile of Julie and Emmanuelle Rainville
- Post Office: co-chairs
- Age: 49 and 46 years old
- Training: Sociology, University of Montreal and School of Entrepreneurship of Beauce