Depanneur Lalonde
Montréal’s ubiquitous corner stores are referred to locally as ‘deps’, short for depanneurs. As journalist Chris Dewolf explains,
“Dépanneur comes from the French word panne, which refers to a lack of something. (A blackout, for instance, is a panne d’électricité.) In France, the word came to mean a breakdown mechanic, but in Quebec, it’s a corner store, dutifully relieving those oh-so-inconvenient pannes de cigarettes and pannes d’alcool.”
This particular depanneur sign – installed by Enseignes Idéal in August 1984 – is fascinating for any number of reasons. It was, by many accounts, a local landmark in St Henri; while we were removing it, several passers-by wanted to know if it was being saved, and by whom. It’s also a prime example of a ‘privilege’ (sponsored) sign, a form of advertising that was banned years ago. While this one sports a Pepsi logo at each end, another sign in our collection, for Moe’s Diner, features 7Up.