Born and raised in Ottawa, Jeff received an honours degree in Economics from Princeton University, 1986 and achieved his Chartered Accountant Designation, 1989, while holding a position with Ward Mallette Chartered Accountants.
Making the leap to retail, Jeff joined Giant Tiger Stores, where after a number of years in operational and management roles, assumed the presidency at age 36. In this capacity, Jeff helped grow the business from a regional discount chain with 250 million in sales, to 1.3 billion in sales nationally as the third largest discount chain in Canada. During his 20 years with Giant Tiger, he served as President and Chief Executive Officer of the company for 10 years.
In 2009, Jeff joined Farm Boy with a mandate to expand the business. Under his leadership, the company grew from a nine-store chain in the Ottawa region to now 35 stores in Ottawa, Kingston, the GTA and Southwestern Ontario with further expansion plans underway. Mr. York served as Chief Executive Officer of Farm Boy Inc., named one of the best managed companies in Canada in 2011. In 2012, Berkshire Partners from Boston acquired controlling interest in Farm Boy and under Mr. York’s leadership, the chain grew to 26 stores.
In 2018, Empire Company owned by Sobey Family purchased Farm Boy for 800M. Mr. York continues to be a minority owner of Farm Boy and currently acts as a Partner in the Farm Boy Company and also serves as Special Advisor to Sobeys.
Mr. York is an active member of the Young Presidents Organization and has been involved in that executive network since 2002. He is an investor in many Ottawa based entrepreneur led companies and serves as Chairman for various companies.