About us

25 years in private imports!

Activin was founded in 1994 by Robert Labelle, the current CEO.

From 1974 to 1987 he was Analyst and Director of the Wine Selection Service at the SAQ. He later co-wrote 3 books on wine and cheese with Jules Roiseux and André Piché. Since then, he directs and owns wine agencies.

Through the creation of Activin in 1994 he became one of the pioneers of private wine importers within Quebec. His over 40 years of experience in the world of wine allows him to meet with the finest winemakers on the planet and select their best wines, and then import them exclusively to Quebec as privately imported wines.

A private import means that the Domaine or Château wine is not available in SAQ stores and thus becomes an exclusivity of the agency that imports it, which must then assume the responsibility for financial costs, risks and customer sales development.

As such, for more than 20 years, the experienced team of wine import advisers from Activin has been serving our very large and distinguished clientele of hotels and restaurants, as well as businesses and individuals, offering a selection of privately imported Domaine and Châteaux wines, internationally renowned for the quality, distinction, originality and consistency of their wines.

Our producers are conscious that an excellent wine always and inevitably comes from a healthy vineyard and a soil that regenerates as naturally as possible. Thus, many of them are skilled at developing rational, biological or bio-dynamical crops.

Activin is constantly evolving to find the best valued privately imported wines according to designation. We are still trying to keep certain products in continuous supply in order to satisfy, as much as possible, restaurant and hotel owners who wish to integrate private imports into their wine list.

Importations Activin is also a family business. Jean-François Labelle (son of Robert Labelle) has been appointed to the post of President of the Activin wine agency since January 12, 2021. With a solid experience in the world of wine since 2007, and vice-president of the company since 2017, Jean-François’s mission is to maintain a high level of service to our distinguished restaurant, hotel and private customers, and to offer them a selection of wines from the best producers on the planet.

A word from the President :

I have been involved in the world of wine for more than 40 years and I am still convinced that, to a certain extent, price has nothing to do with the intrinsic quality of a wine. With respect to wine, I am not difficult; I’m looking for wines with exceptional value, produced by exceptional winemakers, with exceptional terroirs. If a medal or an international distinction is attached to it, it only confirms that I am not the only one to think this.

In any case, I remain convinced that « wine has no other purpose than to be enjoyed in good company ».

Robert Labelle
CEO – Importations Activin