Gerry Price has never been a business leader who seeks attention—but he’s going to have a tough time avoiding the spotlight in 2024.
For starters, the CEO of Price Industries will be a key part of the year-long celebration commemorating the 75th anniversary of the Winnipeg-based manufacturer of commercial air distribution products. But he will also be feted by Manitoba’s business community in May as the latest recipient of the prestigious International Distinguished Entrepreneur Award (IDEA). Previous winners include Howard Schultz (Starbucks), David Thomson (Thomson Reuters) and Chip Wilson (Lululemon Athletica).
This latest recognition comes on the heels of Price being named to the Order of Manitoba this past July.
Since becoming president and buying the company in 1986, Price has orchestrated a growth strategy that has seen the company enter the U.S. market, eventually becoming the No. 1 manufacturer of HVAC products in North America, surpassing $1 billion in annual sales and further expanding its footprint across five continents.
Price Industries now employs more than 4,500 people, including 1,600 in Winnipeg, and occupies nearly 2.5 million square feet of manufacturing space worldwide.
In addition to its operations in the HVAC industry, the Price group has a major presence as an aluminum extruder (APEL Extrusions) as well as a fabricator of city bus windows and driver protection systems (AROW Global).
Though Price remains deeply engaged with the company, he is proud of the team carrying on his passion for business, a consequence of the foundation he built over his 38 years at the helm: “I get to work with an incredible team, including a terrific group of young leaders, who lead in what we call the ‘Price Way,’ which is a highly-principled way of doing business where everybody wins—customers, suppliers, employees and the community,” says Price. “Why can’t business be for the greater good? That’s what it should be and that’s what our company is.”
