President of the Med club since December 2002, Henri Giscard d’Estaing announced this Wednesday, July 16, his eviction by the main shareholder, the Chinese group Fosun.
It is a long chapter that closes for Club Med. President since 2022 of the French flagship of tourism, Henri Giscard d’Estaing announced this Wednesday, July 16, that it was “dismissed” by the main shareholder, the Chinese group Fosun.
“I am forced to put an end to my functions as president of Club Med,” he said during a videoconference with the press, explaining that it followed the designation by Fosun of a new president, “without (his) agreement” and of which he did not give the name. “I informed Fosun that I took note of the decision to appoint someone in my place, without transition and without my agreement,” he added.
Henri Giscard d’Estaing had managed to maintain his position at the head of Club Med in 2024 after a redevelopment of the management of the tourism group, against a background of tensions with Fosun.
“I had clearly told Fosun leaders that I was volunteer and eager, if the conditions were met, to personally ensure the success of this transition by accompanying the future leader for six months in my role as president,” he explained. “In addition, without commitment to the evolution of shareholding, this does not respond to the imperative of shareholder diversity, international governance and French anchoring” of Club Med, added Henri Giscard d’Estaing.
In early June, Fosun had declared to examine “various strategic and financial options” concerning the Club Med, but not to consider “at this stage” of Introduction on the stock market while the day before Henri Giscard d’Estaing had pleaded for an upcoming return to the Paris Stock Exchange.
“Today, this rating is more necessary than ever. It takes international governance for Club Med, respectful of its French values and anchoring. And this is no longer the case today,” he insisted on Wednesday.
The Club Med group, which celebrates its 75th birthday this year, was released in March 2015, after its acquisition by Fosun. “The vast majority of administrators are based in Shanghai, has little international experience and do not speak English. They do not know the Club Med in its world dimension and its French roots,” denounced Henri Giscard d’Estaing.