Claude Choquette

With a B.A. from the University of Montreal, Claude Choquette took over his family’s printing business, which he modernized and equipped with the country’s very first offset rotary printing press. He then began a career as manager of Éditions du Richelieu de Saint-Jean, a Quebec publisher.

In 1966 he was invited by Quebec Minister of Labour Pierre Laporte to sit on the very first Advisory Council on Books at the Ministry of Cultural Affairs. He later played a key role in the founding of Éditions de l’ABC and Éditions Héritage.

A member of the Quebec Booksellers Association, the Association of Publishers of Educational Books, the Superior Council on Books and various employers’ associations, Claude Choquette played a role in launching the Montreal International Book Fair and became its General Director in 1977. Claude visited numerous countries in Europe and Latin America to secure the participation of foreign publishers in the fair.

A constant presence at the Frankfurt Book Fair since the early 1970s, Claude Choquette founded Montréal-Contacts in July 1981, a literary agency specializing in the sale of foreign rights for Quebec publishers. In April 1982, he acquired The Rights Agency, which operated out of Toronto and offered similar services for English Canadian publishers. He renamed the Agency “Montréal-Contacts / The Rights Agency”. Claude was the sole owner until 1998.

In recognition of his outstanding contribution to the publishing industry in Quebec, Claude Choquette was awarded the Prix Fleury-Mesplet in 2007.

Claude currently serves as the Agency’s Senior Advisor.