The monument is situated in the centre of Place du Commerce, near the Montréal Stock Exchange building. It is composed of a concrete base and a polished-black granite pedestal that is split in two vertically through the centre. Inserted into the top of the pedestal is a cast-aluminum bust of Joseph-Xavier Perrault. In front of the monument, an aluminum plaque is installed on a concrete base that is also split vertically, in front of the plaque. In addition to paying tribute to Perrault, the monument underlines the efforts of those who worked to make business blossom in Montréal in the late nineteenth century.

Known as the founder of the Montréal Chamber of Commerce, Joseph-Xavier Perrault was born in Québec City in 1838. After completing his classical education at the Petit Séminaire de Québec, he went to Europe, where he attended the University of Durham, the Royal Agricultural College in Cirencester, England, and the École de Grignon in France. When he returned to Québec in 1857, he became a director and professor at the agriculture school in Varennes. The same year, he was appointed secretary of the Bureau of Agriculture of the Board of Agriculture of Lower Canada. In 1863, he was elected to the Legislative Assembly in the Richelieu riding, and in 1886, he established the Chamber of Commerce of Montréal. He was named a Chevalier of the French Legion of Honour. He died in Montréal in 1905.