K. C. Irving

Kenneth Colin (KC ) Irving, OC, ONB ( born March 14, 1899 in Bouctouche (New Brunswick ), † 13 December 1992, Saint John (New Brunswick ) ) was one of the leading operators in the Atlantic provinces of Canada. He is one of the leading business tycoons of the 20th century. He was born in Bouctouche, a small town, which was dominated by his father's sawmill.

Already in his youth was K. C. Irving as a brutal Intimidator. His first entrepreneurial activities started early, but were overshadowed by the First World War. Together with some friends he wanted to report for military service, which, however, his father said. Instead of this it filed for for visiting the Acadia University in Wolfville, Nova Scotia. However, Irving left the university early, even before his graduation, and moved across country to to British Columbia before returning to Boutouche. His second attempt to report for military service, his father could oppose nothing more, and so he joined the Royal Canadian Air Force as a fighter pilot in.

Irving was married and had three sons, James, Arthur and John.

Irving Oil Limited

As a young man Irving Ford cars sold in Kent County, New Brunswick, and founded in 1924 Irving Oil during the beginnings of the automobile age, before he moved to Saint John (New Brunswick ). Irving Oil expanded from a small network of rural petrol stations to the largest fuel retailer in the Atlantic provinces, eastern Quebec and northern New England, with a few thousand gas stations and stores, the largest oil refinery in Canada, a fleet of ocean tankers and a network of fuel depots in the region.

J. D. Irving Limited

Irving Oil Limited financed most other businesses KC Irving. Some years after the founding of Irving Oil Limited took over KC also his father in Bouctouche the sawmill, JD Irving Limited ( JDI ), which he then expanded consistently. Today JDI is the largest landowner in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Maine. These forests supply the needs of several pulp and paper mills and sawmills, which in turn supply the group-owned newspapers, tissue and diaper factories in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Maine, New York, Quebec and Ontario. The unique and virtually wholly-owned monopoly of the family-owned newspapers in the media landscape allowing the company the control of public opinion in the province of New Brunswick.

Diversification and vertical integration

During the Second World War and the postwar Irving expanded and bought shipyards, established construction companies, food processing companies, radio and TV stations, home improvement stores and transport companies - everything that could be vertically integrated into the empire. This means that every single one of Irving's company, the products and services of other companies acquires Irving, and so the earnings also remain in the conglomerate. The legality of such an expansion of private power over an entire province and thus a departure from democratic rules of the community was occasionally issue of the Canadian federal government. However, investigations on the spot to always ran in the sand.