Quebec’s Service Economy: 10 Pillars from Finance to Creative Industries

Service Sector = ~70% of Quebec GDP, 80%+ Employment

1. Financial Services — Montreal: National Bank, CDPQ, Montreal Exchange, fintech cluster.
2. Tourism & Hospitality — Old Quebec, Mont-Tremblant, Gaspésie, festivals (Jazz, Just for Laughs), 25M+ visitors/yr (pre-COVID).
3. Information Technology — AI (Mila, IVADO), gaming (Ubisoft, EA, Behaviour), SaaS, quantum (DistriQ).
4. Education & Research — McGill, UdeM, Laval, Concordia, HEC, Polytechnique; $3B+ research funding.
5. Healthcare & Social Services — RAMQ universal; CIUSSS networks; aging demographic drives growth.
6. Transport & Logistics — Port of Montreal (containers), Mirabel/YUL cargo, CN/CP rail, St. Lawrence Seaway.
7. Professional & Business Services — Legal (McCarthy, Norton Rose), accounting (Big 4), engineering (SNC, WSP), marketing (Cossette, Sid Lee).
8. Retail & Wholesale — Ste-Catherine, Dix30, Premium Outlets; e-commerce (Lightspeed HQ).
9. Cultural & Creative Industries — Film/TV (Mels, Grandé), music (OSM, Pop Montreal), Cirque du Soleil, gaming, design.
10. Environmental Services — Hydro-Québec (green power), waste valorisation, cleantech (Cycle Capital), carbon market (WCI).

Strategic Edge

Bilingual talent, North American timezone, EU-style social model, R&D tax credits (up to 30%), hydro-powered data centres.