EP343 After the Exit - Identity, Reinvention, and the Next Chapter

About this episode

The episode discusses the challenges and lessons learned after selling a long-established business and transitioning to a corporate role.

What happens after you sell the business that defined you? In this episode, host Colleen O'Connell-Campbell sits down with Candace Sutcliffe, who spent nearly 20 years building The Chef's Paradise (CA Paradis) - a 104-year-old Ottawa retail institution - from employee to president to co-owner, and then made the bold decision to sell to Quebec-based industry leader Doyon Després and step into a corporate executive role. This is a candid conversation about what it actually looks like to navigate a multi-generational business transition: the operational preparation, the culture clash considerations, the identity crisis that comes with letting go, and the unexpected lessons of moving from entrepreneur to executive. Candace shares why protecting her team was non-negotiable, how she learned to detach her identity from the business, and why the exit she never imagined turned out to be exactly the right move. Key Takeaways: Candace started as a retail manager at CA Paradis in 2005, became president in 2013 before acquiring the business, and co-owned The Chef's Paradise from 2017 until selling to Doyon Després about two years ago. She now serves as a corporate executive within the…

People in this episode

Host: Colleen O'Connell-Campbell

Guest: Candace Sutcliffe

Topics covered

• business transition
• identity crisis
• entrepreneurship
• corporate executive
• multi-generational business
• reinvention

Keywords

• business exit
• identity
• reinvention
• entrepreneur
• corporate role
• transition
• leadership

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: The Chef's Paradise, Doyon Després

Places: Ottawa, Quebec

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