Alvin Segal made his fortune with costumes, but his real love was the theater
The former CEO of Montreal’s Peerless Clothing played a key role in the negotiations that led to NAFTA, and his contributions led to the creation of the Segal Center for the Performing Arts.
Alvin Segal, former owner, president and CEO of Peerless Clothing, poses in their Montreal factory in 2002.Photo by CHRISTINNE MUSCHI /THE NATIONAL POST
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Alvin Segal started in the factory of Montreals Peerless Clothing in 1951 when he was just 18 years old and eventually became president and CEO of the company founded by his stepfather, helping to make it the largest supplier and distributor of tailored men’s clothing in North America. . But he was just as passionate about theater as he was about costumes, and one of his most enduring legacies was the establishment of the Segal Center for the Performing Arts, one of the city’s premier theatres.
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Segal died Nov. 4 at age 89 of natural causes. A funeral service was held on November 6 at Paperman & Sons.
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As the leading representative of the Canadian menswear manufacturing community at the time, Segal played a key role in the negotiations that led to the Canada-United States Free Trade Agreement in 1989 and the North American Free Trade Agreement in 1994. He was a big supporter of these free trade agreements, believing that they would greatly benefit the apparel industry in Canada. When the free trade agreement was introduced in 1989, it also proved to be very beneficial for Peerless, which made a significant inroad into the American clothing market.
His role in these agreements led to him being made a Member of the Order of Canada and he was subsequently made an Officer of the Order of Canada.
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He was also very involved in philanthropic activities. His family donated $20 million in 2006 to help build the $55.9 million Segal Cancer Center at the Jewish General Hospital. The Alvin Segal Family Foundation has also made significant donations to the McGill University Health Centre, McGill and Concordia universities, the Orchester symphonique de Montréal, the Governor General’s Performing Arts Awards and the Public Library. Jewish.
One of the things he was most proud of, however, was helping to transform the Saidye Bronfman Center into the Segal Center for the Performing Arts, making it a key Montreal venue for English and Yiddish theatre.
Alvin Segal cuts the ribbon with the same scissors he first cut fabric with during the official opening of the Segal Center for the Performing Arts in Montreal August 19, 2008. With him on stage are, from left to right, Simon Brault, Isabelle Hudon, Bryna Wasserman, his ex-wife Leanor Segal, Mayor Grad Tremblay and MP for Outremont Raymond Bachand.Photo by Vincenzo D’Alto /Montreal Gazette files
He came to see almost every play in the theater many times and it was this passion that drove him to help establish the Segal Center in 2007. A big part of that was his love of Yiddish theater and his desire to build a home permanent for the Yiddish Theater Dora Wasserman.
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Lisa Rubin, Artistic and Executive Director of the Segal Center, said Segal was the greatest viewer and best example of how art can affect someone. He was not an artist. He didn’t sing, he didn’t dance. He was an art lover and he was the epitome of what art can do to his life. He put his money where his heart was and built the Segal Center and continued to inject resources year after year to ensure he could eventually stand on his own regardless of his support.
He often showed up with pastries and pizza for the cast and crew during rehearsals, and made sure everyone who worked there felt at home. For years, he served as Chairman of the Board of the Segal Center and was a very involved President.
Rubin said she would never have become artistic and executive director of the theater without Segal. She served in a variety of roles at the Center, including in the fundraising department, and Segal saw potential in her.
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Alvin saw something in me that I couldn’t even see in myself, Rubin said. Alvin saw something big in me and it didn’t matter that I didn’t have a degree in directing or an MBA. And he changed my life. It’s amazing if you have someone who believes in you so much and reminds you of leadership through the ups and downs. He gave me incredible advice.
Peerless CEO Alvil Segal, right, at an open house for high school students in 2005.Photo by Marie France Coallier /Montreal Gazette files
Elliot Lifson, who had been friends with Segal for nearly 50 years, said his friend loved being in Peerless’ studio as a young man and never forgot those roots. Even when he was CEO, he was always by his first name with many of his employees and would be happy to chat with them.
He was competitive but fair in business, Lifson said.
He was tough but he was very understanding and he was very humble, said Lifson, vice president of Peerless. He fought for what he thought was right, but he was not what you would call a killer businessman trying to take out the competition or a supplier. It was relationship management because he knew the right supplier would make him strong.
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He also understood the importance of trade associations, Lifson added, because he knew that was the way to get the attention of governments.
In a statement, Bryna Wasserman of the Dora Wasserman Yiddish Theater said: It is with a heavy heart that I mourn the passing of Alvin Segal, a true larger than life philanthropist, community leader and titan of industry. Alvin understood the importance of the role of the Segal Centers in preserving our Yiddish culture and language.
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