Ex-grocery boss Jones says customer is boss as he eyes B.C. Conservative leadership

VICTORIA – Former grocery executive Darrell Jones says 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 of B.C., British Columbians would be his boss. 

Jones, who was president of Pattison Food Group until his retirement in February, says in an interview 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. 

He cites affordability, health care and public safety as key issues, and says he had never held membership in a political party until about two weeks ago, when he joined the B.C. Conservatives after John Rustad’s resignation as party leader.

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

Dew says 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 that 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 — who is known for the Darrell’s Deals advertising campaign at Save-On-Foods — said he saw the race as an opportunity to share his corporate knowledge and experience.

He said he did not consider himself a “politician per se,” but rather a longtime entrepreneur willing to enter the political arena to do what’s best for British Columbians. 

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 — but he said “challenges are just opportunities to make things better.”

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