When Arthur Labatt, co-founder of fund-management firm Trimark Financial Corp. of Toronto, was a young boy, he assumed his destiny lay in the family-owned beer business founded by his great-grandfather in 1847. But the brewery, John Labatt Ltd. of London, Ont., was sold before Arthur’s ambitions were realized, so Labatt, winner of the Morningstar Canadian Investment Awards’ 2012 Career Achievement Award, had to carve a different path.
In a career that took many unpredictable twists as Labatt moved through roles in accounting, securities analysis, corporate finance, institutional sales and insurance, his longest venture and proudest accomplishment is the building of Trimark with two partners, Robert Krembil and Michael Axford.
“My favourite time was starting Trimark from scratch, seeing it grow and creating the brand name,” says Labatt, 78. “The company started with five people — two investment managers and three support staff — and grew to about 1,300 employees.”
IETV: Arthur Labatt on his success with Trimark Financial
When Trimark was launched in September 1981, interest rates were almost 20%, inflation was ram- pant, stocks were sinking and Canada’s economy was in recession. Trimark, when it was sold almost two decades later to Britain-based AMVESCAP (now Bermuda-based Invesco Ltd.), was one of the biggest and most highly regarded investment-fund firms in Canada, with assets under management of $25 billion.
“Starting an investment company at the bottom of a deep bear market was difficult,” Labatt says. “But it turned out to be an incredible opportunity to buy stocks at good prices.’
Labatt’s responsibilities as president of Trimark were on the sales and management side, and he
describes his approach as “management by walking around.” He has a keen memory for names and faces, abundant personal charm and a deft ability to put people at ease. Labatt, as a man who has cultivated many interests during the course of his life — including playing the piano and accordion, flying planes, horse riding, sailing and adventure travel — has a wide repertoire of colourful stories to share, as well as an impressive web of connections.
“Even when I was in accounting,” Labatt says, “it was the people side of the business that appealed to me the most. And I realized my strengths were on the client relationship side.”
Labatt left Trimark after the takeover by Invesco, but he soon was asked to return as non-executive chairman to help integrate the two firms, a position in which he remained until 2004. He then accepted a position as chancellor of the University of Western Ontario for a four-year term until 2008. In 2006, Labatt was named an officer of the Order of Canada for his outstanding business and community leadership, and he has received honorary doctor of laws degrees from the University of Western Ontario and the University of Toronto.
Labatt and his wife, Sonia, have supported a variety of causes, including the School of Nursing at Western Ontario, the African Medical Research Foundation, the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health and the McMichael Art Collection. In 2007, the Labatts donated $30 million to Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children — the largest donation in the hos- pital’s history — to establish the Labatt Family Heart Centre and to support the Brain Tumour Research Centre that the family had helped establish with an earlier, $5 million donation. Labatt recently turned his attention to writing, and completed a memoir of his life, entitled A Different Road.
From the Canadian Investment Guide 2013, available on newsstands. Click here to order bulk order copies of the magazine.