Tire specialists are not all alike. This slogan, accompanied by the photo of Charlyne Ratté in 1995, began to change the face of the auto industry, the life of a daring young woman and also the customers of Pneus Ratté.
“After that, I had less need to prove myself. And when you no longer have this need, that’s where you can develop the business, ”says the vice-president of the Ratté Group who, from there, saw the women show up in the garage.
Charlyne Ratté has spent her life on the fringes. At 14, she was cleaning in the family business founded in 1934, then working in the warehouse and unloading trucks of tires.
“I was doing something abnormal, and it made me feel good,” she says.
At school, Charlyne was hard at work. When she was 14, she bought herself an old English car which she might not yet drive, but which she might restore, helped by her colleagues. Almost all his pay was used to buy pieces for Madame La Liberté, the nickname of this singular teenage companion.
Shareholder at 16
At 16, she had already bought shares from her father, who wanted to retire early. She would be part of the next generation, with her older brother, Stéphane, who chairs the company.
Nothing was made easy on the path of Charlyne, who fought to gain credibility in a world of men.
When she moved to sales, customers were asking to speak to a consultant. These referred to Charlyne, who had all the knowledge.
“I always told myself that I had to be the best. The deep desire to succeed gave me strength and the immense desire to prove that I was capable, first to my father. »
Was he proud of her? Charlyne has no certainty, because he never had those words for her. He was a man who managed the hard way and of those who never knew how to say I love you.
Become an entrepreneur
When, in 2001, the young woman and her brother bought all the shares of the company, they wanted to do things differently. Taking risks for growth, which was achieved through acquisitions.
“That’s where I really became an entrepreneur. I finally had this much sought-following freedom, a world of possibilities”, she recalls.
Again, ease was not on his way. When she had her first child, we didn’t really give her time to enjoy it. We had to get back to work quickly.
last chance baby
Twenty-one years later, at 47, Charlyne is expecting her second and believe her, she is going to take a break with this last chance baby, so long hoped for.
The life of an entrepreneur, she still loves it. But not at the expense of her life as a mom. She is not alone on board and she is advancing today with confidence.
After the leave, Charlyne will devote herself to following the deployment of Pneus Ratté, which now has 23 points of sale in Quebec and a Canadian online store, under the Point S banner.
She will do so with the pleasure and confidence of those who no longer have to prove themselves.
A lot of
- Entrepreneurship is? “Dare and take action, then innovate. It’s not enough to have dreams. »
- If you might change one thing in the world, what would it be? “If everyone might have kindness and respect for each other, we would have a better world. »
- Who inspires you? “I admire women in general. We are hot ! In each generation we had to fight to take our place. »