Ex-grocery executive, Jones, says customer is boss as he eyes B.C. Conservative job

VICTORIA — Former grocery executive Darrell Jones said he plans to apply lessons learned from B.C. billionaire Jimmy Pattison to the political world as he considers running for the leadership of the provincial Conservatives.

He says Pattison taught him that the customer is the boss, and if Jones were to be become the premier, British Columbians would be his boss.

Jones, who was president of Pattison Food Group until his retirement in February, said in an interview Wednesday that he’ll decide in four to eight weeks whether to run for the leadership of the B.C. Conservatives after announcing on Monday that he’s “seriously considering” a run.

Jones, known for pitching Darrell’s deals in Save-On-Foods advertisements, cited affordability, health care, public safety and the economy as key issues for such a campaign.

“I think I can help us move forward and create a better environment for each and every British Columbian, and a greater place for businesses to want to come to invest, so we can create more jobs, lower taxes and lower the cost of living.”

Jones said he had never held a membership in a political party until about two weeks ago, when he joined the B.C. Conservative Party after John Rustad’s resignation as leader.

“Let’s face it, I am not a politician, per se,” Jones said. “I’m a long-term businessman, who is willing to enter the political arena to do the best that I can. So, I don’t have tons and tons of connections within the Conservative party, but I do have tons and tons of connections within the people of British Columbia.”

Jones said the Conservatives have had challenges during the last year — which saw their ranks fall from 44 to 39, with five of their former MLAs now Independents

“Challenges are just opportunities to make things better. So we can get past those things. We can pull together. We can pull together all the people in B.C.”

Federal MP Aaron Gunn has also said he’s seriously considering entering the race, while Kelowna MLA Gavin Dew said he’s not seeking the job, citing family reasons.

Dew said whoever wins the contest should be the “unifier” of a party that isn’t focused on culture wars and “chasing after squirrels”

Other potential candidates include MLAs Peter Milobar and Harman Bhangu, former federal MP Kerry-Lynne Findlay and other figures from the business, political and academic arenas.

Dew said in an interview that it was “great to see a wide range of impressive candidates” in the mix and it gave him comfort that he had made the right decision for his young family.

He said that Conservative party members will have lots of choices who “reflect the breadth of our party” and the contest should not be a “tug of war” but instead a “unifying process.”

“Every leadership race is somewhere between a talent show and a civil war,” Dew said.

“My hope is that this is closer to a talent show than a civil war, because there are so many people who are willing and able to serve, and we need all hands on deck to defeat (Premier) David Eby and form a new government.”

He said being preoccupied with “culture-war grievances” is not the path to government.

“We have to show people, and the next leader has to show people, that we are deadly serious about the issues that are affecting them every day … and that we’re not tilting at windmills and chasing after squirrels.”

Jones said he saw the race as an opportunity to share his corporate knowledge and experience.

UBC political science lecturer Stewart Prest said Dew’s decision is interesting, because he had thought of him as a “likely candidate,” who could have run as a “compromise” leader to fill the gap between the party’s populist and moderate wings.

“What we are seeing so far is a pretty steady dwindling of the viewpoints expressed,” Prest said.

He said he’s skeptical about Jones’s chances.

While Jones can claim a long career in business, he has no really strong established political positions, beyond promises to create a more business friendly environment and unify the province.

Entrepreneurs “without political chops” face a difficult path, Prest added.

Meanwhile, it is the end of the road for One BC, the party formed by former Conservative MLA Dallas Brodie and Tara Armstrong last summer.

The Office of the Clerk in the provincial legislature confirmed that One BC has lost its official party status after Armstrong announced that she would sit as an Independent following a split with Brodie.

The split happened when Armstrong said she had lost the confidence in Brodie’s leadership because of her decision to fire a staffer over what Brodie called “disgusting” views on race and Jews.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 17, 2025.

Wolfgang Depner, The Canadian Press