Linda Bouvier, president of Party Expert, described the situation as “totally unacceptable.”
This text is a translation.Article from CTV News.
“It's unreal, I mean I've been in this business for more than 20 years, and we do a lot. We respond to all the requests, which are numerous from the Office du langue française. They have a lot of power over companies,” said Ms. Bouvier.
“It's frustrating… We want to go somewhere else. In other provinces, where it would be much easier.”
– Linda Bouvier
Ms. Bouvier, a French-speaking Quebec resident, is opening a new store in Quartier Dix30 of the Brossard shopping centre. She explained that her company applied for a signage permit in May, and that the city of Brossard responded by email last week referring to the new language law, known as Bill 96, and sent it back to the Office du Québec de la langue française (OQLF).
“Our billboard company contacted OQLF for information. We sent the city of Brossard our certificate for the party expert group issued by OQLF. It says, ‘We renew one every two years.’”
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Bouvier noted that her company has a committee that ensures that all French language requirements are met. “But this time, they are questioning our brand, our Quebec-based brand. We sent them the certificate, but that wasn’t enough for them to issue the permit,” said Ms. Bouvier.
According to the employer, the provincial language control body is currently reviewing the situation and the party expert suggested providing options that could be used to add or change the name.
“I’m like, no. We’ve been around for over 20 years. We’ve spent a lot of money building this brand and getting it known, but there’s no way we’re going to start doing this.”
In a statement to CTV News, OQLF noted that it is not responsible for granting signage permits and does not interfere in the process. “The office is responsible for enforcing the charter that sets out the rules for public display. The office assists and advises businesses on changes that need to be made to comply with the charter obligations, while taking into account other requirements to which businesses are subject, such as municipal bylaws.
Furthermore, the office points out that it never requires translation of trademarks.
Melissa Tehrani, an attorney at Gowling WLG who specializes in advertising law, told CTV News that the new language law requires businesses to include logos, generic terms or descriptions in French. These French elements must be in the same visual field and take up at least twice the space of a non-French brand name or trademark.
“I have the impression that we are always doing something wrong,” Ms. Bouvier said. “And as a French-speaking Quebecer, we respect all of that. We love Quebec. They are creating flaws that we already have that are difficult to overcome.”
Ms. Bouvier, who invested nearly $2 million in the new Brossard store, said the experience prompted her to reconsider expanding her business in Quebec.
