The Dufresne Story

Home Grown, Family Owned & Community Oriented

Our Founder: Doug Dufresne

The Dufresne story is shaped by the dedication and determination typical of Saskatchewan farmers in the early 1940s. Doug Dufresne may not be able to recall those early years growing up in Saskatchewan, but it's fair to say the work ethic, respect and kindness he learned from his parents, which he and his wife Eva passed along to his three sons, remains the foundation of Dufresne today.

Doug and Eva Dufresne opened the first Dufresne Furniture & Appliances store in 1986 in their hometown of Kenora, Ontario. This second career came after the successful sale of their service station businesses and a restless attempt at retirement. It would prove again that the combination of Doug's passion for helping people and serving the community and Eva's meticulous management skills is the foundation for success in business and in marriage. In 2013, we were proud to celebrate Doug and Eva's 50-year wedding anniversary!

Growing The Family Business

Our second location opened in 1993 and our third store, also in Winnipeg, was in business by 1996.

Dufresne Furniture & Appliances continued to grow from a seven member team in Kenora, Ontario to nearly 400 team members today across Manitoba and Ontario. We opened stores in Swan River, Selkirk, Portage la Prairie and Brandon and expanded in Northwestern Ontario and into Ottawa, Ontario. By 2009, the Dufresne brand had grown to 11 stores across the two provinces.

In 2016, Dufresne marked their 30^th anniversary with the opening of their 12^th location, opening their doors in the city of Steinbach, Manitoba!

Dufresne Furniture & Appliances is continuing to grow, breaking through in new markets, welcoming their 13th location in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan and their 14^th in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan in August of 2017.

The Dufresne Brand Today

The Dufresne family remains core to our business, with Doug, Eva, and their sons forming the foundation of the company. Mark Dufresne is our CEO, while Shaun Dufresne is a leader in our Dufresne brand. Today, a third generation joins the ranks with 5 grandchildren involved in daily operations. Doug and Eva still work on special projects and are often seen at the home office in Winnipeg and at special events in the community. The small-town work ethic, respect and kindness that Dufresne originally cultivated are still prevalent today in our values of people, passion, performance and promise.

Among the very best is our current leader, Mike Linton, President and CFO, who has been with TDG for over 25 years. Mike is supported by a highly engaged, experienced, and dynamic team. Together, they work closely with Mark and our executive team on all areas of our operation to reinforce the mission, vision, values, beliefs and culture the Dufresne family established starting with that first store in Kenora, Ontario and to provide a better experience to our teams, our community, and our guests.

We are proud to continue to focus on the customer service model we learned from Doug Dufresne. For that reason, we employ our own professional delivery teams, courteous call centre professionals and experienced repair technicians. We believe we can offer a better experience because we find, hire, and train the best people.