Empire chief Pierre St-Laurent to speak at GroceryConnex
Canadian Grocer is pleased to announce that Pierre St-Laurent, president and CEO of Empire Company Ltd. and Sobeys Inc., will take the stage at GroceryConnex this November.
St-Laurent will join Kim Furlong, president and CEO of the Retail Council of Canada, on this year’s Leadership Panel.
Taking place Nov. 23 at The Fairmont Royal York in Toronto, GroceryConnex is the premier event for Canadian grocery executives, bringing retailers and manufacturers together to learn and explore innovative solutions that will shape the future of grocery.
St-Laurent was appointed to his current position in November 2025. He served as the food and pharmacy retailer’s executive vice-president and chief operating officer from 2021 to 2025, leading merchandising, retail operations and supply chain nationally across grocery and related businesses.
Throughout his impressive 35-year career at Empire Company, St-Laurent has amassed a wealth of experience and profound business acumen. His journey within the company has seen him excel in various key functions, including finance, distribution and logistics, retail operations and business development. More recently, St-Laurent played a pivotal role in driving Empire’s transformation under its Sunrise and Horizon chapters where his disciplined, decisive approach helped establish Empire as an industry leader, as well as in leading the continuity of the company’s operations and servicing of our customers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In 2020, St-Laurent was named one of Canada’s 50 Best Executives by the Globe and Mail’s Report on Business.
He is currently vice-president of the board of directors at the Fondation Charles-Bruneau, and serves as a trustee on the board of directors for The Sobey Foundation.
