Wayne Chiu, a mechanical engineer from Hong Kong, immigrated to Calgary in 1982.
It was not an easy beginning, as he was soon laid off as an engineer as the economy slowed.
In 1985, he and his wife and business partner, Eleanor Chiu, bought an ice cream outlet in the food court of one of Calgary’s office towers. With that as their first experience as an entrepreneur.
In 1992, they founded Trico Homes, which today has expanded to Cochrane, Airdrie, Chestermere and Okotoks and has built more than 12,750 homes.
In 2016, Chiu started Trico Communities to build, own and operate purpose-built rental and commercial properties.
The company has several times been named Canada’s Best Managed Company as well as Canada’s Best Workplaces, and has been certified as a B-Corporation.
Through their foundation, Trico Charitable Foundation, established in December of 2008, the family aims to donate an average of 10 per cent of their annual profit, and has donated millions to causes ranging from education to healthcare and community initiatives.
Both the Trico Group of Companies and the foundation are moving into second-generation participation, with Patrick Chiu as president of Trico Communities since 2022.
Here, Eleanor Chiu shares the family’s business and philanthropic trajectory.
What are your memories of your earliest years in Canada, setting up your first business?
“In 1982, when the federal government enforced the national energy policy, Calgary’s economy [softened]. Thousands of engineers, geologists and other professionals were laid off. Wayne was one of them.
In 1985, after a few months of idleness, Wayne found an opportunity to buy and operate an ice cream outlet in the food court of one of Calgary’s office towers. That was our first experience as an entrepreneur.
But most importantly, we learned how to calculate margins and tried to run a profitable business.
We also learned that hiring good people and training them well are very important for the success of a business.
Hard working, problem solving, flexibility and perseverance are all factors that are very important to be an entrepreneur.
Finding a good and cost-efficient solution to a problem, and timely, is vital to the survival of any small business.”
What came next?
“In 1992, Wayne established Trico Homes and started building residential homes in Calgary.
We had a very small team at the time and we hired many new immigrants, who were very skilled and willing to work very hard to help build the business and to gain relevant experience.
With an engineering background without any formal business training, Wayne went to MRU [Mount Royal University] and took business courses to enrich his knowledge, especially on finance and accounting.
He was very humble and asked for advice from some very seasoned realtors and people in the industry. He did not have any mentor or champion officially but worked very hard to build relationships and to expand his network.
It was very difficult in the very first few years, as we did not have a lot of capital. We worked extra hard to earn the trust of the developers so they will give us opportunities to build in their areas. We had very competitive pricing to attract customers, since we were a very small and a very new company.
I remained working full-time in an oil and gas company to ensure we had regular income to support the family.”
Could you describe the origins and growth of the company?
After we immigrated to Calgary, he had a chance to work on a few small construction projects. After a few years working in the industry, he started Trico Developments Corp., now evolved into the Trico Group.
We started from a very small company, building around 10 houses a year in 1992. After 31-plus years, we are one of Calgary’s top five builders (in permit counts) and produced over 700 units of single-family dwellings in 2023.
At the very beginning, because of lack of capital, we had syndication of funds from various investors, on a project-by-project basis. We reinvested almost all of the profit we had earned back into the business to continue to grow the business.
There were a few boom times in Calgary’s real estate market. We were lucky to be able to take advantage of some these booms and continue to grow, especially during 2002 to 2007 and 2020 to 2024.
We managed tough times by being versatile and flexible in our cost control and our sales strategies. We thought about establishing a long-term strategy to tackle the boom and bust cycles of the Calgary economy.
First thing we did was to establish a diversification plan. We started to expand into purpose-built rental in 2019 and senior living in 2020. Most of our major growth is by reinvesting our profit back into the company.
From building around 10 houses a year in 1992 to one of Calgary’s top builders, Trico’s revenue has grown over 200 times since its inception.”
How did you face challenges and who helped along the way?
“Wayne had friends and peers who were very helpful along his career path. He’s also very humble and will not shy away from asking questions and seeking advice.
He spent a lot of time in planning and formulating his strategies in acquiring land inventory. The biggest hindrance was when developers wouldn’t sell lots to Trico, especially during the early days when we were small and lacking a track record.
We were very grateful to a few developers in our early days who would give us a chance to build in their areas. Wayne was very, very persistent and his honesty and integrity were definitely something that impressed them.
Holding tightly on to our values of being honest, respectful, and trustworthy are principles that guided us, especially during tough times. This is one of the best [pieces of] advice we got and learned from both of our parents, who were also entrepreneurs. They were our best advisors and role models.”
How did your philanthropic approach develop?
“Wayne and I grew up in big families with many siblings. Our parents were very loving and we learned that we had to share and love and support each other so the family can survive and can thrive.
We both are Christians helping people is something that really resonates with us, whether through donation or volunteering. The concept of doing well by doing good was deeply imprinted in us since we were very young.
As Trico’s business got bigger and more stable, we wanted to share the fruits of our success with our community. The first significant donation we made was in 1998 and we donated over 10 per cent of that year’s profit to a charity. Since then, it has been our mandate to give back to the community diligently.
In 1998, our company was still very young and 10 per cent of our profit was not that significant in today’s standard, financially. However, it has helped solidify our desire to give back, especially witnessing the impact of our donation.”
How did you involve your children in philanthropy?
“Since our children were very young, they witnessed us giving away money as donations and our time volunteering. We encourage them to do the same.
As they grew older, we taught them the concept of being a custodian of wealth. As custodians, we have the power to use our wealth to do many things, good or bad, wisely or stupidly. They were encouraged to make wise choices.
Sharing generously is something my kids are very comfortable doing since they were kids.
Now that they are adults, we have established an advisory board consisting of our three children and their spouses (two of our kids are married).
They will have a budget from the Trico Group to give away and they will determine what causes and what charities they want to donate the money to. This will help them to put their passion into action and allow them to experience firsthand the power of money and the meaning of being a custodian or a steward of that money.
It is a continuous and long-term process that needs reinforcement regularly.
Acting as a role model by showing them in our actions is way better than any preaching.
We have a family charter that shares our stories and the values that we think are important for our family. This family charter is shared with all family members and it a document we expect to pass down through generations. It is our wish that our children will continue this giving and sharing culture in the family.”
What is your perspective on Alberta?
“Alberta is a very exciting place where there is a very strong entrepreneurial spirit. People are very hard working and will try their best to overcome hardship.
If you have the ability, you can find opportunity, even if you do not have a lot of connections or family support.
From a business perspective, we have a big pool of talent in Alberta for hire. People in Alberta are generally very resilient and persistent; at the same time, very generous and compassionate.
As a visible minority, we felt very welcomed and accepted in Alberta.”
Responses have been lightly edited for clarity and length.
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