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CHAPTER 11
Looking UP
Keith doing business on the phone in the early 1960s,
around the time he met Betty Smith.
HEADS, I WIN
Years earlier, while out on a double date, Keith had fl ipped
a coin to determine which girl he would walk home. That
coin toss resulted in a marriage and three children. Despite
how tough things were with Lee, he decided to let fate
rule again. The facts of his fi nancial situation were grim,
but something in him didn’t feel ready to give up, despite
strong evidence that it was time to cut his losses. At an
impasse, he sat down with a coin and a question. Tails, he
would declare bankruptcy; heads, he would soldier on with
Beedie Construction. Keith took a deep breath and fl icked
the coin into the air. The coin fl ew through the air and came
down tails. He had his answer, but he didn’t like it. Seeing
the tails side of the coin, Keith realized how much he
wanted to carry on and make a go of the company.
Determined not to declare bankruptcy, Keith approached the Royal
Bank of Canada. “Th ey listened to my story,” says Keith. “Th ey were
very positive about Beedie Construction and set me up with a plan. I
paid every cent I promised.” It was touch and go for a while, between
meeting the payments and keeping up with the interest charges. But
Keith knew he was in the fi ght of his life to rescue the company he had
worked so hard to establish, and he was not going to lose. He also asked
all the sub-trades to put their overdue invoices to one side for a full year,
plus extend him further credit. Th ey agreed – a strong testament to the
strength of the relationships Keith built with his sub-trades.
“Th e Beedie name carries a lot of respect within the Royal Bank.
Keith Beedie is known right across the country at RBC for his
business ethic and credit worthiness. Keith has quietly progressed
through the years, building up an incredible arsenal of properties.
Th ere was no huge breakthrough. Keith’s success is due to his
perseverance through good and bad markets.”
—KELLY McKNIGHT, RBC ROYAL BANK
Th e year 1963 had been tough, with a broken marriage, a failing
market, coping with a fraudulent accountant and trips to the bank
with his hat in his hand in order to save his company. It hadn’t been
a banner year for Keith, but one event was about to change his luck.
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