in front of his garage.
1949
Ovide St-Onge was a retired mechanic from St-Louis-de-France, a stone’s throw from Trois-Rivières. Imagine his horror when he realized his own car was under attack from what he called the dreaded “metal cancer”—rust. His years of experience were put to good use as he came up with a remedy: a mineral oil–based rustproofing formula. He built a ramp to apply the formula, but couldn’t meet the increasing demand. His two sons began to help him out.
1975
Ovide St-Onge passed on the torch to his sons, Bruno and Laurier, who founded Metropolitan Rustproofing. Rust’s days were numbered. That same fall, no fewer than 1,300 clients came to get their vehicles rustproofed at the family garage.
1976
Another success as the two brothers opened a second branch in Québec City.
1981
in the days before the ramp.
1982
A branch in Longueuil followed, with Laval getting in on the act two years later. In later years, seven more garages—including one in Ontario—would help meet demand for the family’s rustproofing formula.
1984
The turn of the century
Scientists provide a new perspective
Metropolitan Rustproofing decided its product could be made even better and formed a partnership with the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières (UQTR) and the Centre de recherche industrielle du Québec for a number of research programs. The company invested a great deal of time and money in the programs, on top of a grant from the National Research Council of Canada.
Laurier decided to sell his share of the business to his brother. Bruno became company president, ensuring the business stayed in the family!
2000
Metropolitan Rustproofing continued its research with UQTR and other scientists to ensure it remained a market leader.
2000-2003
The company began rustproofing trucks, vans, heavy vehicles, and RVs, as well as public-sector and business vehicles. These vehicles were rustproofed at the company’s Anjou branch, which was specially adapted to work on them.
2003
and became a testing ground for a new self-service car wash.
2006
Bruno St-Onge decided it was time for a new generation to take over. His son, Jean-Luc St-Onge, and Christine, Pascal, and Manuel Champoux became company managers.
2008
For almost 40 years, the company had always been managed from the family garage and the St-Onge family home. But the business had outgrown the home and a new headquarters officially opened on June 11, 2013.
2013
Today, Metropolitan Rustproofing has the wind in its sails! The company plans to open two or three new branches per year in the near future, an impressive rate of growth for a company that will soon turn 40—and that remains as much on the cutting-edge of technology as ever!
2014