Scene is set for London Olympics Triumph

EDF Energy plc. The responsibility for performance of the supply obligations for all EDF Energy supply contracts rests with EDF Energy Customers plc.

Fournisseurd’énergie à LondresPour plus d’informationvisitez edfenergy.com

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EDF Energy plc. The responsibility for performance of the supply obligations for all EDF Energy supply contracts rests with EDF Energy Customers plc.

Fournisseurd’énergie à LondresPour plus d’informationvisitez edfenergy.com

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Stranded in Libya A South African executive and his family had been living and working in Libya for the past three and a half years. He was shocked when news came of violence against citizens. “That’s when I realized I had to get out and get my family to safety,” he says. His company is unable to arrange for them a flight back home and he waits for the Government to rescue him and his family.

Threat from radioactive leaks

An MNC with international assignees in

Japan is concerned about its employees as

the news breaks out about radioactive

leaks from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear

power plant following the recent

earthquake and tsunami in Japan.

Heart attack mid-flightA frequent French traveller, on his way back home from a business trip in

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editorialPresident,

French Chamber of Commerce in Great Britain, and Chairman & CEO, International SOS

Arnaud Vaissié

The tradition that the world went to sleep in August and returned refreshed in September to start the New Year has now been well and truly overturned. This August

has seen more political activity, more market uncertainty and indeed more domestic unruliness and disarray than any of us in this country can remember, let alone imagine. Those who thought they can holiday in August, many politicians included of course, and think that their countries were safe without their attentions for a month have had their hopes rudely shattered.

Let us remind ourselves of this extraordinarily busy August. The warning signs were established when we saw on our television sets on Saturday 6 August, the distressing sight of parts of London literally in flames and looters emptying shops. We see elsewhere in this issue some explanations and context for this event. But whether we were in London or on holiday, we were all shocked and perplexed. This was not the London we knew. Nor was it the Londoners we knew.

We hope, for London’s sake, that this is an isolated event as the city prepares to host the Olympic Games. The Olympics are the subject of our Focus in this issue, and while we are all getting very excited about this event of a generation, we cannot disguise our concern about the Games’ security. We will no doubt hear more about this from Paul Deighton, CEO of LOCOG, our guest speaker at our Gala Dinner in November.

David Cameron’s return to London from Tuscany strengthened the resolve of the police and the courts to deal with those responsible. London’s travails appeared to have been replicated on the stock markets and indeed in the Eurozone where anxieties about sovereign debt and the American de-rating by Standards and Poor’s resurfaced. The result was a sharp sell-down in stocks and a return of speculation about a double-dip recession. That case has yet to be made.

The last drama of this August is the only one with any prospect of a positive ending. This is the final push in the battle for the overthrow of Colonel Gaddafi, and his replacement by a transitional committee. The weeks and months ahead will be watched with interest.

The Chamber meantime is gearing up for a very busy September. We look forward to meeting you at our Dîner de la Rentrée. Our programme of clubs and forums will restart with new vigour. We wish you a good return to London and to work, with the hope of a little more peace and quiet than we have seen recently. I

info - october / november 2011 - �

issue 197 / October – November 2011contents

Managing Director: Florence Gomez Editor-in-chief: Nicolas KochanAssistant Editor: Lawrence JoffeCorp Communications Exec: Hannah MedioniGraphic Designer: Prima HevawitharaneAdvertising: David Lislet - Tel: (020) 7092 6651Publications Assistant: Anne-Cécile LarribauCover picture: © CCFGB/Prima HevawitharanePrinted by: Headley Brothers LtdSubscription: INFO is published every 2 months.

Editorial Committee: - Sébastien Delecour, Emma Harris, James Igoe, Kasia Kemal, Jemma Scott, Michael Stuart & Jean-Christophe Rolland.

Contributors: Caroline Cohen, François Debertrand, Vince Fihosy, Alexis Grabar, Rob Hoccom, Gordon Innes, Michaëlle Jean, Thibault Lavergne, Michala Marcussen, Denis Masseglia, Ailsa Mellor, Mark Naysmith, Hugh Robertson, Véronique Revington, Arnaud de St Exupéry, Kasia Suswills, Brett Taylor, David R.W Thompson, Martin Tricaud & Gareth Wynn.

Distribution: CCFGB members, Franco-British decision makers, Business Class lounges of Eurostar, Eurotunnel & Air France in London, Paris and Manchester.

Editorial and Publishing Offices:French Chamber of Commerce in Great BritainLincoln House, 300 High HolbornLondon WC1V 7JHTel: (020) 7092 6600; Fax: (020) 7092 6601www.ccfgb.co.uk

51 London2012–catalystforalowercarbonfuture

Culture and perspectives52 AlittlecornerofFranceinLondon

54 Artisticexplosiontomatchsportingprowess

Culture

57 DegasandtheBallet:Picturingmovement

58 What’son

60 BD&ComicsPassionatFrenchInstitute

Wine Press 62

News @ the Chamber... 65

66 Newmembers

68 What’snew

70 Curtainsupforamidsummeroperatictreat

71 Enjoyingthebubblybeyondthebustle

72 Morethanagameoftwohalves:AgreatdayoutforPatronsattheEmirates

73 Forthcomingevents

76 QuarterlyEconomicupdateservesmembers’hungerforinformation

77 TwelvetipsonbestHRPracticefromtheChamber’sHumanResourceForum

25 TheFrenchAusterityPlanexplained

27 UKregionalreview

Success Story 28 PrivatejetssetAvolusongrowthtrajectory

London’s Olympic triumph 30

Business opportunities & the Olympics 32 LondonOlympics:Allset,andalmost

readytogo,saysUKMinister

34 TheBritishBusinessClub–invitingtheworldtoLondon2012

36 Britain’spathtoglobalsuccess

37 GamesaregoodforBritain’sfinances

38 SharingOlympicspiritonascreennearyou

39 AccommodatingtheOlympicsboom–literally!

40 CommercialgatewaytotheGames

41 A‘French’ChipandFishatWestfieldStratford

42 Jumpingoverthehurdleofdisability

Infrastructure, Operations in London 44 MakingLondonthestaroftheshow

46 LondonPrepares

48 Beatingtherush–transporttotheGames

50 Readinessisall–preparingfortheOlympicchallenge

Breaking News

10 HowsafeisLondon?

5 minutes with 12 Martin Tricaud

Globalbankerwiththelocaltouch

News in the City 15 Themenaceofstagflation

17 PullingtogethertoprotecttheEuro

News 19 EDFEnergyisawardedUK’slargestever

electricitysupplycontract

20 Arsenaltomarkits125thanniversary

AccorsellsLenôtretoSodexo

21 ChefSilvenaRoweopensQuincerestaurantattheMayFair

BanqueTransatlantiquerewardsgraduates

22 LaunchofDeezerintheUK

RenaultwinsBestGreenDevelopmentinBusinessCarFleetTechnologyAwards

23 TheFrenchCommunityinBritain:votingcomeshomein2012

24 MightFrenchtaxreformssabotagenon-residentinvestment?

Martin Tricaud Global banker with the local touch12

Private jets set Avolus on growth trajectory28 Jumping over the

hurdle of disability42

London Prepares46 Curtains up for a midsummer operatic treat70

� - info - october / november 2011

Patron Members of the French Chamber of Commerce in Great Britain

G U I D E L I N E S

October 2009

10 - info - october / november 2011

breaking news

Riot Police proved no match for young people in hoodies

In August, London looked like a city at war. The shooting of a Tottenham drug dealer, Mark Duggan, by the police, sparked social unrest, and

the riots quickly spread in London neighbourhoods before reaching Manchester, Birmingham, Nottingham and Liverpool. Social media and BlackBerry’s are said to have played an important role in facilitating the coordination of riots and looting, to the extent that the CEO of BlackBerry was called in to assist the Metropolitan Police with their investigations.

An estimated £200 million worth of property damage was incurred when vehicles, homes and shops were attacked and set alight. Local economic activity was also significantly compromised and there was an irretrievable loss of architecture heritage. Five people died and many were injured as a direct result of related violent acts.

The violence triggered a massive police clampdown, and, as of August 25, 2,006 people had been held and 1,135 people have been charged. The total number of crimes across London linked to the disorder has reached a dishonourable total of 3,443.

The political response has reflected the sheer scale of surprise at the outbreak. Of course, most politicians were on holiday, but none appeared to have the slightest idea this was brewing, or why latent discontent had spilled over so palpably onto our streets. “The world has looked at us horrified”, said David Cameron before Parliament, and the horror was all the more palpable as the agents and causes of the riots remained unclear.

Newspaper columns have filled to bursting with articles seeking to answer one question: Who were the rioters? Commentators came up with many answers. They were underprivileged youths, looting high-value goods vaunted by TV but out of their reach. Or they were gangleaders and members who picked their moment to hit the shops and went for it. Or indeed, they were spoilt but bored middle class people who had nothing better to do. They cited for evidence the fact that among the looters were to be found an Olympic ‘ambassador’, a school teacher, an organic chef, a ballet dancer, and many people who had a job, a family and a decent place to live.

Every manner of social malaise was cited as causes of the unrest. These included violent computer games, rap music, bad parenting, consumerism, police inefficiency, coalition cuts, unemployment, racism, moral breakdown, bankers’ bonuses and expense-fiddling MPs. The riots certainly resulted from a complex conjunction of economic, social, political and moral factors. But if so many youths felt so stranded from society that they acted as if they had nothing to lose, then simply blaming moral decay and calling looters “sick” (as so many privileged politicians did with gusto) was a dangerous exercise in denial. They were missing the crucial point that these riots amply demonstrated

How safe is london?The recent London riots showed young people attacking each other, ransacking shops and setting

buildings on fire. This was mindless violence that set every law abiding citizen on edge. The riots

may have missed their area this time, but what lessons should London draw about their ability

to walk about at night, or during the day, without fear or threat, in the future

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as far as some commentators are concerned. This is that violence has become a mode of speech in Britain, whether it be violence to oppose cuts and the rise of student tuition fees or violence to publicly express cry out one’s feeling of estrangement.

It did not escape some of the commentators of Britain’s riots that France too had had its riots just six years ago. Some cited some of the same causes, namely youth estrangement leading to violent unrest. The 2005 riots in Paris had their origins in the electrocution of two teenagers who were trying to escape a police ID check. The riots, which engulfed the outskirts of the capital city for more than three weeks, had a racial and social dimension - a fact not apparent from the more casual London riots. The Paris riots spread in the poor suburbs of Paris mainly among North African communities.

Yet when riots burst out in London last month, French officials and CRS1 felt able to offer their British counterparts an “exchange of experience” to deal with the riots, as French Home Secretary Claude Guéant put it. He may well have encouraged the British police to adopt the more robust stance of the French. London police were not allowed to resort to water cannons or rubber bullets to confront the looters.

London’s capacity to deal with issues of safety and security is particularly crucial as the City readies itself for the 2012 Olympics. If the spectre of terrorist attacks remain the main threat, danger from within, be it criminality, theft, or riots, is resurfacing with ever growing intensity.

Three police forces are currently responsible for Greater London’s safety: the Metropolitan Police which is responsible for policing the vast majority of the capital and is geographically divided into 32 Borough Operational Command Units, the City of London Police which is responsible for the Square Mile of the City of London, and the British Transport Police which polices the rail network and London Underground. Crime figures published by the Metropolitan Police help assessing the efficiency of those forces.

On the face of it those figures do not look at all bad. In a decade, the total number of crimes has dropped gradually from 1,057,360 in 2001-2002 to 820,636 in 2010-2011. If the number of sexual offences remained high, the number of burglaries and robberies decreased substantially. Westminster borough has the highest crime rate, followed by Camden and Tower Hamlets.

Crime has also fallen across the transport network. Boris Johnson recently said “London’s transport system is safer than Paris or Amsterdam or virtually any other of our European neighbours.” Yet in a list released by British Transport Police, King’s Cross, Victoria and Stratford had the highest number of reported offences

among stations in Zones 1-3. Last year, there were 194 offences reported at King’s Cross, 186 at Victoria, 165 at Stratford and 147 at Oxford Circus.

So London has become safer as far as the figures are concerned. Recent events should not damage London’s reputation irretrievably or cast doubt on the city’s capacity to host the Olympics. Those who have questioned its security cannot deny the very positive way many individuals and businesses have responded. This has showed that they were able to help and support each other in the aftermath of the riots. Thousands of Londoners grouped together to clean the damaged areas, and big UK banks such as Barclays and HSBC have pledged additional financial support to businesses affected by the riots. Other companies such as Veolia have been working in partnership with various local authorities in the capital to ensure a swift clean-up following the riots.

As the dust settles, the focus of concern is concentrating on the very large number of jobless young people in the capital, and this number is growing as the recession and as cuts bite. Politicians of all ideologies now accept that young people in gainful employment are far less likely to resort to looting or throwing petrol bombs at police if they feel they have something to lose. While the rioters have been targeted with the full force of the law and many will spend months maybe years in prison, they may have sounded a warning note to a complacent British establishment. That they either act now to make London safe, or can expect more and maybe worse unrest in the future. I

Anne-Cécile Larribau 1CRS: Compagnies Républicaines de Sécurité - the French anti-riot forces

London’s burning, a bus set alight during the riots


HSBC is an international bank supporting the needs of clients throughout the world. Its

understanding of national and international markets, together with its ability to provide a full

range of services, is unparalleled, says Martin Tricaud, Global Head of Multinationals at HSBC,

responsible globally for the teams managing relationships with multinational companies outside

their own domestic markets

Could you give us an idea of the structure of HSBC?HSBC was created about 150 years ago in Hong Kong and Shanghai. Since then it has become a truly international company in terms of staff, presence and business. It has a network comprising around 7,500 offices in 87 countries and territories in Europe, the Asia-Pacific region, the Americas, the Middle East and Africa.

HSBC Global Banking and Markets, the unit in which I work, provides tailored financial solutions to major government, corporate and institutional clients worldwide.

HSBC’s strategy is to be the leading international bank with a presence in the key markets that matter for international connectivity and, as part of that, to be the bank of choice for multinational companies.

Do you think corporates need to rethink their relationships with their banks, in the light of recent history? Maybe the banks need to rethink relationships with their clients – especially if some of the problems arose because of over-flexibility or too liberal borrowing? Are banks now applying a stricter attitude to lending?Due to changing regulation, more capital has to be mobilised for the lending business and therefore banks are becoming more careful. HSBC is strongly capitalised. It is still very committed to financing its customers and we are open for business.

We prefer to have a broader relationship with

clients where we can offer the full range of banking services such as cash management, foreign exchange, trade finance, and derivatives, and the more strategic businesses like M&A and equity capital markets.

Within the whole banking industry, capital has become a scarce commodity and you will see banks prioritising their relationships.

And is that really a consequence of the new regulatory environment?This is a consequence of the new regulatory requirements; yet also the result of the recognition that

Martin Tricaud

5 minutes with...

Martin Tricaud, global banker with the local touch


5 minutes with Martin Tricaud

we need to generate a better return for shareholders. But the liquidity is certainly scarcer than before. There is a shift of business – where historically banks were mostly seen as balance sheet providers, now we are partners in supporting our clients in various fields of activities, a range of banking services, on a multiple geographical basis.

When French companies have subsidiaries abroad, do they tend to have French companies as their local bank?I do not expect French companies to go as a matter of priority to French banks. They will go to the bank that they see as the most competent - in Thailand, Mexico, Brazil, and obviously in the UK - and also, the bank better connected with their head office. If you have a problem in Thailand or Mexico, you may wish to talk to your global relationship manager in Paris, if you are a French company. That is exactly what we offer. It is a fully centralised relationship management model, and a decentralised execution delivery platform. That really is the key – to co-ordinate in a centralised manner and to provide the relationship management closer to our clients, but with a global reach.

What do you see as the main problems for the Eurozone? And how might it work its way through…?The Eurozone needs something that will link the individual nation states sufficiently tightly together so that the market does not differentiate between them in terms of debt pricing to such a large degree. It is highly unlikely the Eurozone will become a full fiscal transfer union but there could still be closer integration. This does not exclude the possibility of some kind of restructuring.

The Eurozone was always a political project and has never been an optimal currency area in terms of structure or country membership. It now requires a political solution to make it more of an optimal currency area, involving closer fiscal integration.

Is the current crisis a response to and even a threat to globalisation? Or a consequence of it?We have seen how quickly turmoil in one country, and particularly in capital markets, will contaminate other markets. We have also seen that no economy can be managed and developed in isolation from the rest of the world.

Banks have been under great pressure, because of their leverage, their transparency, and their investments in problematic markets. How well positioned is HSBC and the banking sector to service the wider global economy?

A lot of work has been done over the last three years in strengthening the banking sector. And this has come from the banks themselves, the regulators and the governments. There are efforts towards stronger capitalisation, stronger liquidity, more caution and conservatism in lending and financing.

This will be sanctioned in a positive way by the new Basel III regulations, and it is something which we support. These regulations put more constraints on banks and will have some impact on their profitability. But they also provide more stability and security.

In that context HSBC had a “good crisis”, in the sense that it was probably more conservative than some others. And this is a consequence of our history. When we were founded in Hong Kong and Shanghai in 1865 there was no lender of last resort – if you didn’t conduct your business prudently and profitably, you would go under.

We still have that culture and so we remain self-reliant today. During the recent crisis we were one of the few banks that did not need to take money from governments – we have always been able to operate.

So we believe that HSBC has a great opportunity to continue to expand, because we are in a strong shape. We have a very strong balance sheet, and a strong ratio from a capital and liquidity perspective.

How well do you feel the French are managing their economy? Do they need a more austere approach?The French government has made various commitments to do everything required to maintain its credit rating. And the agencies have clearly reaffirmed that they do not think that this triple A rating is at risk.

Some French people say that France is losing a lot of market share in the Eurozone, particularly for its smaller companies, because of German productivity. German economic strength is worrying the French government and managers. Do you see France coming under pressure, now that its growth has virtually fallen to zero?France’s medium sized segment is not the forte of the French economy, unlike Germany. Traditionally the strength of the French economy, in respect of the export business, comes from the very large companies. And we have a good number of world champions in industrial sectors like energy, luxury goods and services. But it is true to say that there is a gap between the very large global champions and the very small local enterprises. We believe this is an area where the French Chamber of Commerce can help and we at HSBC are committed to providing the support we can to these companies. I Interview by Nicolas Kochan

This document is issued in the UK by the London Branch of Société Générale. Société Générale is a French credit institution (bank) authorised by the Autorité de Contrôle Prudentiel (the French Prudential Control Authority). Société Générale is subject to limited regulation by the Financial Services Authority in the UK. Details of the extent of our regulation by the Financial Services Authority are available from us on request. © GettyImages - FRED & FARID

N O T H I N G I S A S S T R O N G A S T E A M S P I R I T

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by Nicolas Kochan

France should not be complacent about its ability to retain its AAA rating. But it is questionable

whether such ratings are as valuable as they once were

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There has rarely been a time when life in the financial sector has looked more uncomfortable.

Markets are more volatile and skittish than ever. That is to say they are prone to go with the latest news or message, rather than to see longer term trends and stay with them. So one set of figures, whether they relate to employment, industrial utilisation or macro-economic policy, will cause a sharp and erratic swing. The severity of swings undermine confidence and many traders, both large and small, are avoiding markets for fear of getting caught out by the next twist and turn of sentiment.

Where markets start to worry and act in this unpredictable way, is when they see governments like Greece, professing to pass policies that are aimed at cutting their deficits, but then failing to carry them through. They are no less anxious about countries like Italy who simply do not appear to be able to persuade their people to support policies sufficiently astringent to deal with their problems.

As far as the City is concerned, the jury is out on the French policy of

fiscal tightening

The menace of stagflation

recently proposed by the President. Undoubtedly, there are siren calls for the AAA sovereign rating to be cut on the grounds that the country’s budget deficit is high, and measures to deal with it are simply inadequate. But these noises have not yet reached the intensity to make it likely that such a reduction will take place.

The reduction in the long-term ratings of Société Générale and Crédit Agricole, by ratings agency Moody’s, will undoubtedly send a warning signal across the bows of the French Central Bank and French Treasury. BNP Paribas has been placed only on review, and may retain its existing rating. This decision by Moody’s was based on the banks’ exposure to Greek sovereign debt and Greek capital markets, but the banks argue that they are well capitalised and the downgrades were less severe than some in the market were expecting.

In the light of these decisions, there is the possibility that markets will make a further push for a reduction in the sovereign rating. This would not be the end of the world. The US has come out of its reduction with its currency and bond yields strong. The authority of the ratings agencies has been greatly devalued by the 2008 crisis and banks and sovereigns can shrug off a down-grade as a piece of bad news, but one with relatively slight consequences.

So what is the market contemplating as it looks forward to the coming year and indeed decade? The first and most widely expressed fear is that Western economies are going to travel the path of the Japanese economy of the last decade. This is embodied in the world ‘stagflation’, where growth in production is weak, while the spectre of inflation starts to stalk through European and no doubt North American economies. Such a scenario is worrying because it precludes pump-priming with new money, forcing Governments to cut and cut again.

The social as well as political consequences of this stagnation do not need spelling out. I NK


news in t he ci t y

Latvia tops Eurozone||| One country surpassed all other Eurozone countries in the second quarter of this year. While the average growth rate across the zone was a paltry, no desperate, 0.2%, little Latvia notched up 2.2% and Estonia 1.8%. It must be something in the local water, for Germany grew by just 0.1% and France was completely stagnant. I

Manchester United for sale in Singapore

||| Manchester United football club has undoubtedly many supporters in the City of London. But it will not have made any new friends when it let it be known that it was examining the possibility of a floatation of $1 billion worth of its stock on the Singapore Stock Exchange. The reasoning for this location is the heavy following the club has in Asia, but others read it as another example of the Byzantine financial structures used by the Glazer family who own the club. I©

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||| On the subject of tax, nobody is more aghast than Britain’s wealthy at the apparent altruism of the wealthy French people who have suggested to their government that they should be taxed more not less. Already Martin Sorrell, the very wealthy head of the media concern WPP has said he pays quite enough tax, but of course he will pay whatever the law requires him to pay. We don’t see any great commitment here to share the views of people like Liliane Bettencourt (of L’Oreal fame) or Maurice Levy (of Publicis) or Christophe de Margerie (of Total) and thirteen more wealthy French people who wrote to Le Nouvel Observateur, offering to make an ‘exceptional contribution’ to help the government improve its finances. Would any British businessman say, ‘when the government is asking everyone to show their solidarity, it seems necessary for us to contribute.’ I

French ask to pay more tax!||| The squeeze on Britain’s rich is tightening. This is not about ideology, of course, but straightforward necessity. They are having to pay their share of the budget deficit, along with the other parts of the population who are having their benefits and educational allowances cut.

The news that Switzerland is going to start a withholding tax on Britons with funds secreted in a Swiss bank account will not have come as a surprise to many who have seen the loopholes close one by one. The larger issue for these fortunate folk lucky enough to be able to afford such a bolthole, and for whom such a bolthole is not so prohibitively expensive compared with the gains it provides, is which bolthole will be the next to concede to big brother Britain. There will be nothing stopping the wealthy moving their funds further afield, to Cayman, or even the British Virgin Islands. But that could get expensive if every tax haven starts to impose taxes.

The one consolation about the whole affair is that those who leave their money in Switzerland and pay up to the authorities, know that they will not be named and possibly shamed if their money does not come from totally clean sources, perish the thought! Britain will not ask where the £5 billion it expects to get from the tax payers comes from either. I

Wealthy Britons feeling the pinch

Hewlett Packard’s bid for Autonomy

||| Foreign takeovers of British firms have been controversial since Kraft took over Cadbury’s last year, igniting a torrent of rage as British Parliamentarians questioned whether the American firm had paid proper attention to the jobs of British workers. Now the issue of foreign takeovers has surfaced again with

Hewlett Packard’s bid for the British software company Autonomy. The bid has prompted the shadow business secretary John Denham to suggest that takeovers of strategic companies should face particular scrutiny. Protectionism, it seems, may be on the rise in these difficult times. I


news in t he ci t y

Profile

The governments of the Eurozone bloc have too much to lose to do anything else but introduce the

measures necessary to save the Euro. Marcussen says the cost to Europe as a whole of sacrificing the Euro, and returning to individual currencies would be too horrendous to contemplate. ‘I do not see a break up of the Euro’, she says. ‘When they look into the abyss and look at the world without the Euro, policy makers will take action.’

That is the key message of one of the City’s most formidable commentators, Michala Marcussen, the Global Head of Economics at Société Générale Corporate & Investment Banking . Those measures are likely to be largely dictated by Germany and include austerity, structural reform and wage restraint. ‘This is the German diet’.

Amid the crisis and the uncertainty, she sees European governments taking slow and painful steps towards building the institutions required to build a central fiscal machine. These are necessary developments to ensuring the sustainability of economic policy over the long term. ‘We are building a Europe based on three pillars: economic governance, financial stability and the rescue mechanism. We haven’t had the institutional framework to deal with the crisis, so it is being dealt with on an intergovernmental basis. That is now changing. A significant amount however has been achieved, even if it is in a muddled way.’ Markets will push government all the way to a rescue of the zone and she expects a European bond market to develop over the next 5-10 years.

Euro area electorates are not happy about the current situation; be it the need for rescues or the need for austerity and structural reform. Marcussen warns that one should not equate the current visible dissatisfaction of electorates as equating to a desire to leave the Euro.

The political mood is clearly a point to monitor, but the risk of an extremist party coming to power and taking a country out of Euro today appears low.

Outside the euro area, the country that would lose the most if the Euro were to collapse would be the UK. ‘The UK is on the front line of the crisis and would suffer tremendously if the Euro were to collapse. It would trigger a massive recession in the UK,’ she says controversially and gives two reasons for this. First, she says some 60% of UK exports are with the Eurozone, so this would dramatically upset the single currency block. Second, the exposure of financial institutions in the City of London (both British and foreign) to Euro-zone sovereign debt amounts to around 50% of GDP. The break-up of the Euro would result in massive losses – though not a total write-off – to these banks. The impact on the UK’s financial centre in the City would be massively painful.

The outlook, which ever way you look, is hardly inviting. But correct policy decisions promise long-term stability in Marcussen’s book. I NK

Pulling together to protect the Euro

Countries across the zone will have to bow to German demands to impose austerity measures if

the Euro is to survive. In return, Germany will use its financial clout to bind the zone together.

A very painful fate awaits the zone if this strategy fails. Michala Marcussen of Société Générale

Corporate & Investment Banking says governments have no option but to create some form of

fiscal union, even if it is by stealth

Michala Marcussen

French ask to pay more tax!

1� - info - october / november 2011

news in t he ci t y

The stormy world economy. Get the trusted, global guide. Our unrivalled network of journalists provides essential international coverage. For a 4-week trial, go to www.ft.com/FT4


Compiled by Hannah Medioni

n e w s

EDF Energy is awarded UK’s largest ever electricity supply contract following a competitive tendering process

||| On July 28, Government Procurement Service (GPS*) has awarded the UK’s largest ever electricity supply contract by annual volume to EDF Energy following a successful tender process.

The framework agreement will see EDF Energy supply electricity and energy related additional goods, works and services to the NHS, Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Justice, Metropolitan Police, London Underground, the Highways Agency and other bodies across central and local government.

As part of the deal, EDF Energy will initially supply in the region of 30TWh of electricity over a four-year period from April 2012, although this volume could rise significantly during the lifetime of the agreement, dependent on uptake of additional public sector bodies

to the framework. The volume supplied each year will be higher than under any previous electricity supply contract in the UK. This initial volume is the equivalent of powering 2.3 million typical households over the same period.

As well as electricity supply, EDF Energy will provide strategic and practical sustainability advice to help Government departments use energy more efficiently and reduce emissions.

“We are proud the Government has placed its trust in us to supply power and energy efficiency advice to public services that millions of people depend on every day” said Vincent de Rivaz,

CEO of EDF Energy. I *the GPS is an executive agency of the Cabinet Office which delivers centralised procurement services for Central Government Departments and the wider UK public sector.

||| Eurostar has launched a free mobile application on 23 August allowing passengers to book journeys on-the-go and receive tickets direct to their phones.

Eurostar has also launched a mobile version of eurostar.com, to give its customers an enhanced online experience when using their mobile devices to access the website. The mobile website offers a simplified homepage, the ability to book and manage journeys as well as access to loyalty point balances and service updates. The Eurostar App is available for free from the App Store on iPhone or the Android Market on Android devices. I

New Eurostar App Turns your Phone into a Ticket to Europe

The free Eurostar Apps helps travellers

Make bookings for up to six travellers between Paris, Brussels, Lille and the UK on the go Check-in using mobile ticketing (NB: mobile tickets are not yet available for multiple bookings)Review booking(s) and journey detailsAmend booking using the Express Exchange functionality for Business Premier ticketsCollect and review loyalty points on-the-go Access service updates and FAQs

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||| Citroën is strengthening its partnership with Arsenal Football Club, as the Club’s Official Automotive Partner, in a new three year extension to the existing agreement. In addition to a significant branding presence around Emirates Stadium, Citroën will develop its integrated partnership programme, with new marketing, digital, dealer and promotional activities.

Retaining the use of Citroën’s squad of talented vehicles, coaches and staff will benefit from recently introduced models.

Citroën has worked with Arsenal on a number of projects during the last three years, creating the Ultimate Fan’s Car with cartoonist Gerald Scarfe in aid of Teenage Cancer Trust. I

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Citroën and Arsenal extend partnership

||| Accor has announced that the contract to sell Lenôtre to Sodexo was signed on the 2 August, after the favourable opinions issued by the Lenôtre and Accor works councils were received.

Two days before the deal was on, Denis Hennequin, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Accor sells Lenôtre to Sodexoof Accor, said: “I’m very pleased about the interest expressed by Sodexo as an ideal buyer, enabling Lenôtre to continue its development while benefiting from increased resources. Once this sale has gone through, Accor will be fully focused on the hotels business.” I

Bondonneau eSolutions changes name to Web Consulting Team||| Website experts Bondonneau Solutions, with 8 years’ experience, have rebranded as the Web Consulting Team Ltd (WCT) as part of the co mpany’s expansion. With offices in both London and Paris WCT specialise in

providing online services to SMEs including customer centred localised in France and in the UK web design, search engine optimisation and online marketing to companies in the UK and in France. I

||| Arsenal Football Club marks its 125th anniversary this December, and has a number of activities taking place to mark the formation of the club in South London all those years ago. The most visual celebration is the kit the team is wearing home and away for the duration of the season, featuring a bespoke crest to reflect the history of the club. Around the Gunners’ home at Emirates Stadium in North London, various installations have been incorporated to add historical context to the players that made the club what it is today.

Nike coordinated a free to view five day exhibition at the iconic Saatchi Gallery on London’s Kings Road. On display

were 125 canvases of fans, celebrities, legends and current players. The exhibition was opened by Chief Executive Ivan Gazidis and current first team players Kieran Gibbs and Wojciech Szczesny along with celebrity fans. In line with the actual anniversary in December further lasting installations will be fitted around the stadium featuring club legends, while the club’s home match against Everton on December 10th will set the scene for a footballing celebration of 125 years that has seen Arsenal Football Club become a name known globally for its vision and style of play. I

Arsenal marks it 125th anniversary

The Emirates Stadium, home of Arsenal FC©

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Graduates at Banque Transatlantique photo call

Chef Silvena Rowe opens Quince restaurant at The May Fair||| Inspired by one of the world’s oldest cuisines, Quince at the May Fair brings innovation to Eastern Mediterranean cooking and an exciting new dining experience to one of London’s most talked about hotels. Quince stands for both authenticity and adventure, from Chef Patron Silvena Rowe’s respect for Eastern Mediterranean traditions to a thoroughly modern take on age-old cooking styles.

With a sophistication that belies the simplicity

Silvena Rowe biography

Silvena was born in Bulgaria in 1977. Her father instilled in her the love of cooking and passed down the traditions of the Ottoman cuisine. In 1996, she moved to London and cooked in the Kitchen of the Notting Hill bookshop Book for Cooks. She also met Malcolm Gluck and the two began to write a regular food column in the Guardian.

Silvena’s career has seen her cook for London’s most discerning diners, from royalty to rock stars. Her inspirational cooking style also led to a role as food consultant on David Cronenberg’s 2007 film Eastern Promises, and her infectious personality regularly lights up our TV screens on shows such as Saturday Kitchen on BBC. I

Banque Transatlantique rewards graduates

||| Since 2006, Banque Transatlantique has been rewarding the graduates who have achieved excellence thanks to their talent and efforts attaining “Mention Très Bien” at the Baccalauréat from the Lycée Charles de Gaulle in London.

Friday 1st July 2011 saw a special ceremony at the French Ambassador’s Residence honouring the new 60 laureates and their families.

During the event, Mr. Bernard Emié (French Ambassador to the United Kingdom), Mr. Bernard Vasseur (Lycée’s Headmaster), Mr. Hubert Veltz (Banque Transatlantique‘s Vice President) and Mr. Yves Pinsard (Banque Transatlantique London’s General Manager) cordially congratulated them.

Banque Transatlantique is proud to sponsor these events in several countries as they are momentous occasions for French families particularly abroad. Moreover, the students will often go to universities in France or in another countries and Banque

Transatlantique will assist them in their first steps away from the home.

For over 130 years, Banque Transatlantique has developed a recognised expertise in banking and wealth management services for French persons living abroad. I

and lightness of the food, dishes are beautifully constructed to resemble art on a plate – seeds, shoots, leaves and flowers add flourish to the simple elegance of the dishes.

The menu features recipes handed down from grandmother to daughter over generations, and the sense of family is palpable - reflected not only in the shared dishes served from an open kitchen but also a warmth and sincerity of service seldom found in London’s luxury quarter. I


news

||| Deezer, the premier music streaming service, which already has over 20 million users worldwide, has been launched in the UK in September. With 13 million licensed tracks, Deezer is set to become the number one destination for all UK music fans. A team of music experts, with an unrivalled wealth of knowledge, have injected real, human passion into Deezer to help users discover the music they love.

It offers access to millions of tracks and subscribers can listen to them as many times as they like, there are also dozens of radio channels in 12 music genres, 30,000 artist-based radio channels and thousands of

Launch of Deezer in the UK in September

artists’ discographies, biographies and reviews. Deezer is available on PC/Mac, mobile phones, all smart phones, tablets, IP TVs & IP Sound Systems including Sonos and Logitech Squeezebox, making it more ubiquitous than other digital music platforms. The web-based service, with no client software to download, means you can access your music instantly, wherever you are. You can even play your music offline; on a plane, on top of a mountain, anywhere, you won’t

need 3G, Wi-Fi or the web to access it. I

Free Trial – If you want to try out the premium services, you can get a 15-day free trial. Premium - £4.99/month – Unlimited streaming on any PC/Mac in enhanced sound quality, no ads. Premium+ - £9.99/month – Unlimited streaming, on PC/Mac and all handheld devices online or offline

Check out www.deezer.com or enter m.deezer.com in your mobile’s web browser

Renault wins Best Green Development at Businesscar Fleet Technology Awards

||| Renault UK’s green credentials have been recognised once again, this time in the 2011 BusinessCar Fleet Technology Awards, known as The Techies, in the Best Green Development – Manufacturers’ category.

Renault was awarded the title in recognition of its investment and commitment to electric vehicles and for being the only manufacturer to offer a full range of zero emission cars. In the right circumstances, electric vehicles can be a real asset and money-saver for a business and Renault’s Kangoo Z.E. Van is an impressive first step towards adoption of electric power where appropriate.” Darren Payne, fleet and commercial vehicle operations director at Renault UK, said: “The Renault-Nissan Alliance is investing four billion Euros into the Zero Emissions (Z.E.) programme and the fruits of this will soon be a familiar sight on the UK’s roads.

“Here at Renault, we’re committed to greener motoring, which, in turn, lessens the cost for fleets. Our Renault eco2 range now extends to 51 cars and 32 vans that reach our strict environmental standards for accreditation as eco2 variants. The Z.E. product offensive for this year and 2012 further enhances our drive to significantly lower vehicle emissions.” I

Renault’s range of ‘Green’ cars


news

The French community in Britain: voting comes home in 2012

||| 2012 promises to be an important voting year in France with two major events: The Presidential election and the parliamentary election. The election of the President of the Republic, elected by a direct vote every five years, will take place next year on the two Sundays of April 22 and May 6. The parliamentary election will also be on two Sundays – June 3 and 17. With this in mind, the French Consulate General in London will be organising two ballots for the French community in Great Britain. Through registration at the Consulate, French nationals will not only have the option of casting their vote in the Presidential election on British soil but for the first time will also be able to elect an MP specifically designated to represent French expatriates.

The second represents a significant constitutional development for the French Republic in 2012 and was motivated by the desire to empower and give its expatriate citizens a voice. The French government is thus giving its worldwide expatriates the opportunity to elect 11 MPs of which 1 will be elected by those of Great Britain and Northern Europe. This electoral reform has afforded French expatriates voting rights almost unparalleled in the world.

For those French expatriates who choose to vote in Great Britain in 2012, there will be two voting stations in London, one on the site of the French Lycée Charles de Gaulle in South Kensington and a second in the Collège Français Bilingue de Londres (CFBL) in Kentish Town. There are a further 7 voting centres planned outside London, in Ashford, Belfast, Birmingham, Bristol, Chesterfield, Leeds and Liverpool.

French expatriates will be able to vote in person at the polling station or by nominating somebody to vote on their behalf, alternatively it will also be possible to

cast a vote by post or electronically over the internet.In order to be able to vote on British soil in 2012, it is

essential that you register your name on the expatriate register at the French Consulate before 31 December 2012. This can also be done remotely by post. I

For further information on registration and the voting process in 2012, visit the French Consulate of London’s website and click on the 2012 elections link, or go to www.ambafrance-uk.org/Consulat-general-a-Londres.html.

||| GDF SUEZ and IBERDROLA have been informed by SSE (Scottish and Southern Energy plc) that it has decided to end its involvement in the joint venture company NuGeneration Ltd (NuGen) established to develop a new generation nuclear power station of up to 3.6 GW in West Cumbria.

IBERDROLA and GDF SUEZ confirm their strong commitment to NuGen and will bring their respective stakes in the project to 50%. NuGen has been making significant progress – particularly in the course of the past year – to ensure that it is appropriately resourced in terms of skills, knowledge and experience. They are therefore highly confident about their prospects in respect of their development plans in West Cumbria and there is no reason why this decision by SSE should impact upon NuGen plans or timetable. As scheduled, the final investment decision should take place around 2015 with commercial operation of a new nuclear power station expected by 2023. I

IBERDROLA and GDF SuEz reaffirm their commitment to NuGen and bring their stakes to 50%


news

effects of foreign Trusts in France. However, this is the first time that the French government introduces a legal definition of Trust. The new tax regime contains a very penalising tax treatment in terms of gift tax, inheritance tax and wealth tax and create important tax liability and disclosure information on Trustees.

Other measures include: the end of the “tax shield” (bouclier fiscal); an increase of the gift tax and inheritance tax rate up to 45 percent; and the end of the inheritance tax advantage to set up a life insurance policy as a non-resident.

Lastly, the new law introduces an exit tax for French residents transferring their residence outside of France. This tax applies to individuals who have invested more than 1 percent of the share capital of a company, whether French or non-French, or a value in excess of 1.3m euros. I

This article is for general information only and is not

intended to provide legal advice. For further information

please contact: Caroline Cohen, Solicitor at the French Law

Practice. www.thefrenchlawpractice.com

||| The revised Finance Act for 2011, published on 30 July 2011, certainly represents good news in the shape of a revised wealth tax. Regarding non-residents, however, there may be pitfalls ahead.

Streamlined wealth levyEssentially the wealth tax threshold has been increased from 800,000 to 1.3m euros. The actual progressive rates from 0.55 percent to 1.8 percent have been decreased to a new rate of 0.25 percent from the 1st euro (for a net value of assets over 1.3m euros) and of 0.5 percent from the 1st euro (for a net value of assets over 3m euros). These new rates will apply from 2012.

Consequently, non-residents owning French property for a net value between 800,000 euros to 1.3m euros will no longer be subject to wealth tax. This should also constitute an important decrease of wealth tax exposure for high net worth individuals investing in France. For example, a UK resident owning a €5m property in France will have to pay an amount of wealth tax of 25,000 euros compared to 40,000 euros under the current tax rates.

Investment through real estate companiesNon-residents have frequently invested in real estate in France through SCI (a French real estate company) for patrimonial reasons. In order to reduce their wealth tax exposure, the non-residents have lent money to their SCI. These loans were financed through their shareholders current account, to reduce the net value of their shares for wealth tax purposes. From 2012, debts based on shareholder current account will not be deductible for French wealth tax purposes. Non-residents would have to revisit their financing strategy...

Foreign Trusts regime and other measuresAlthough the concept of Trust does not exist under French law, French courts have always recognised the

Might French tax reforms sabotage non-resident investment?

France has just introduced a major reform of taxation of private assets. Caroline Cohen argues

that its effects on non-residents may be less than welcome…

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Non-residents frequently invest in French real estate


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||| On Wednesday 24th August the French Prime Minister announced a €12bn austerity plan, including tax increases totaling €10bn. This was intended to reassure the markets by showing that the government, which recently downgraded its growth forecasts, still targets a deficit of 4.5% of GDP in 2012 and 3% in 2013. The main measures are detailed below.

Additional tax on high incomeTaxpayers with an overall taxable income (including income from capital assets such as dividends, capital gains etc.) in excess of €500,000 will pay an additional tax of 3% on the amount above this threshold. This will apply from 2011 onwards and will be scrapped as soon as the deficit is reduced to 3% of GDP.

Social contributions on income from capital Capital income (interest, dividends, capital gains on shares and bonds, real estate gains, income from property) is currently subject to various contributions (CSG, CRDS etc.) representing 12.3% in total. These contributions will increase to 13.5%.

Corporation taxThe carry back of losses will now be limited to the

The French austerity plan explained to INFO

previous year instead of the three previous years. Remaining losses will still be carried forward against future profits, but the amount claimable will be capped to 60% of the profit where the latter is in excess of €1m. This will apply to accounting periods ending after the enactment of the law.

Furthermore the ‘Régime Mondial Consolidé’, whereby large French groups were allowed to claim losses incurred by foreign subsidiaries will be scrapped from 2011 onwards.

Capital Gains Tax on PropertiesThe government initially announced that it was removing the existing rebate of 10% per year after the 5th year of ownership (resulting in a full exemption after 15 years) with immediate effect and replacing it by an indexation relief, whereby the purchase price would be increased by the rate of inflation from the date of acquisition.

However several MPs opposed the plans. As a result, the government amended its proposals and reintroduced rebates after the 5th year of ownership, although at lower rates. The rebates will now be as follows:

2% per year between year 6 and year 153% per year between year 16 and year 2510% per year after year 25

Consequently there will be no taxable capital gain after 30 years of ownership. The plan to introduce indexation relief is dropped and the government also agreed to postpone the change until 1st February 2012. Main residences remain exempt from CGT.

Lastly, sales between non residents of shares of a SCI (a vehicle commonly used for properties) owning a property in France will now have to be registered with a French Notary and will be subject to Capital Gains Tax in France. I François Debertrand, Head of International

Development at Beavis Morgan

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Worldwide and local removals,relocations & storage.

Serving the French community inLondon for over 30 years.

+44 20 8687 [email protected]

Delahaye_Ad_82_62 19/1/09 17:13 Page 1


Michael Ward becomes new Head of Trade & Investment at the British Embassy in Paris

||| In July 2011, after five years as Head of Trade & Investment at the British Embassy in Paris, Barbara Habberjam returned to London to work for the Department of Business Innovation and Skills. Her successor, Michael Ward, is a career diplomat specialised in European affairs and trade promotion; his previous overseas postings

have included Paris, Istanbul, Budapest, and Brussels. Most recently, he led a programme to develop a new, reinforced commercial diplomacy function in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. In addition to the role as Head of Trade & Investment for France, Michael will also have responsibilities across Europe, the Middle East and Africa as Regional Director for Inward Investment. I

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hello, goodbye...

The French Chamber of Commerce would like to welcome the new representatives of existing member companies. We would also like to express our gratitude to members who have made outstanding

contributions to the Chamber, but who are now moving on to different destinations. We wish them all the best in their new posts.

Barbara HabberjamMichael Ward

British Chambers of Commerce appoints John Longworth as new Director General

||| Mr John Longworth replaced David Frost CBE, who has run the leading business organisation for eight years, on September 5. Mr Longworth has held a number of high-profile roles in business and public life, including stints as a senior executive at Asda and Tesco. He is currently a non-executive director of the Co-operative Group Food Ltd and Nichols plc.

Since last July, Martyn Pellew is the new BCC President, replacing Neville Reyner CBE DL. Until June 2011, Martyn was president of the North East Chamber of Commerce (NECC), trade and industry. I John Longworth

ERRATUM

In the last issue of INFO magazine, we wrongly attributed the interview entitled ‘Setting the standards for haute cuisine’ (on pages 50 and 51) to Alain Ducasse, the Dorchester’s 3-Michelin star chef. The answers were in fact given by Laurent Plantier, the CEO of Alain Ducasse Entreprise. This unfortunate mistake was unintentional and the Publications team would like to apologise to Alain Ducasse and Laurent Plantier for this error and any embarrassment caused.


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Plugging the SME investment gap in Wales

||| How can canny investors unlock the potential of small yet ambitious Welsh businesses? One way comes in the form of the UK-wide £2.5bn Business Growth Fund, whose director for South Wales and south-western England has been since

May Paul Oldham.Profiled by the magazine “Business in Wales” this

August, Oldham said that he is now recruiting an investment team to identify SMES that are truly poised for growth. If the firms meet BGF criteria they can bid for private equity finance of up to £10m, held for 10 to

15 years. That timeframe is considerably longer than the venture capital norm. In return the fund would claim an equity ownership of between 10 to 49 percent.

The BGF arose out of the Rowlands Commission, chaired by Welshman and former 3i executive, Chris Rowlands. Manchester-born Oldham also has ties with Chamber patron 3i, having headed their Welsh office since 1989. And another Chamber patron, HSBC, is a senior funder of BGF. “Really excited” about helping firms neglected by mainstream financiers, Oldham plans to build direct relationships with companies – which could bring some cheer to many a budding entrepreneur. I

||| In a Northern Irish economy long dominated by manufacturing, services are now making an impact on the nation’s export ledger. Figures released this March show that foreign sales by a so-defined “high export potential group” of services

companies grew by 46.6 percent from 2005 to 2009. Computing accounted for a commanding 58.2

percent of total HEPG exports of £225.5m in 2009. Other firms in the sector are involved with market research, business and management consultancy, architecture and engineering, technical testing, advertising and creative entertainment. And Invest NI clients make up

UK Regional Review

||| Collaborations between business and academia have risen sharply and should benefit Scotland’s economy. So says Interface, which brokered 144 contracts between firms, universities and research bodies over the past year, a 47 percent

growth on the previous twelve months.Interface director Siobhan Jordan feels SMEs

especially are ‘maximising their potential by tapping into universities’ wealth of knowledge and expertise.’ One instance is Jacobite Cruises, whose Loch Ness boats now harness clean energy from sun, wind and water, thanks to their partnership with the University of the Highlands and Islands.

Commercial and collegiate Scotland forges ahead

Service exports hold steady in testing times

80.5 percent of the HEPG.However, the statistics released by Export Northern

Ireland Services (ENIS) are not entirely rosy. While service exports rose by 24.1 percent during 2007-8 the equivalent rise in 2008-9 was just 0.3 percent. Northern Ireland still suffers from the global economic downturn; in fact, manufacturing exports fell by 8.5 percent in 2009/10 to £5.2bn compared to growth of 8.2 percent the previous year.

Nearly half of Northern Irish manufacturing exports go to the EU. Those that went to France were valued at £210.7m in 2009/10, and France remains the number two destination, just behind Germany and well ahead of the Netherlands. I

The French Institute stands to play a larger role too, suggested Pierre-Alain Coffinier when addressing Scottish ministers and parliamentarians on Bastille Day. It recently launched a dynamic programme promoting relations between French and Scottish universities. In addition, said the French Consul General, three major French companies have increased their Scottish interests: Total in developing gas fields near the Shetlands, Technip by investing more in Aberdeen, and Alstom’s pact with a Scottish wave energy firm. As Scotland reported strong private sector growth for seven consecutive months and increased export orders for nine months, there seems to be an indelibly French thread in the nation’s future tartan. I


then another limousine at the other end, or perhaps a yacht to the ultimate destination, very high net worth individuals and senior businessmen will arrive at meetings in better shape, or be able to indulge their expensive fantasies. Avolus measures its success, in part, by the wealth of the people on its books, and Mr Grabar is proud to report that the company has five billionaires (out of a global universe of 1200) and 40 multi-millionaires on its books. He is too discreet to name any of them.

The tastes of his clients are extremely diverse. So while some will simply want to make a transatlantic crossing in a private jet in comfort, another, in this case a Russian, was prepared to pay 350,000€ for a ‘huge flight’ between Moscow and the Antarctic. This enabled the oligarch to celebrate his birthday with his friends. In fact, the company’s average transaction is only 25,000€.

Although Mr Grabar says he does not accompany the client on every journey, it is no wonder that he and his team are constantly on the move. ‘My team and I need to be on the planes, at the airports. This personal touch is the key aspect of our business. It is very important.’ He says that 70% of the business is obtained from referral. So the element of customer care cannot be overstressed.

The hiring of private jets works in three ways. First, the planes can be chartered for single journeys; second, the client can buy blocks of hours; thirdly, the client can buy an aircraft. ‘We call this business the Avolus jet ladder, because we follow the need of the client. Clients may not know a lot about aviation, but we take them on a learning curve. We have had a lot of people using private jets for the first time. We grew the business on

s ucces s story

W ealthy people are prepared to pay large sums for companies that will take the pain out of

global travel. That is the simple truth that Alexis Grabar and his company Avolus have found profitable. By taking a limousine to the airport and a private plane or helicopter, whichever is more appropriate, and

Private jets set Avolus on growth trajectoryAlexis Grabar is fascinated by what makes a company win. He not only enjoys raising money from

investors but is skilled at backing winners. One such is his own company, Avolus, a leading player

in the private jet chartering and acquisition sector

Alexis Grabar, fascinated by what makes a company win


the basis that private aviation was something new.’Clients who want planes for around ten flights are

advised to buy a block of hours, ranging between 10 hours and a hundred hours. This is a more economical way of using a very expensive item. The frequent high net worth flyer, who needs to fly upwards of 400 hours a year, is likely to be advised to acquire his own aircraft and Mr Grabar says he buys or sells some five helicopters or planes a year. Avolus is also a significant player in the European market for aircraft hours that includes major players like NetJets.

The company was founded out of a small unit near Battersea heliport, by Mr Grabar in 2004. It has grown by some 100% a year over most years since then, and today has some 450 clients. Of these 40% are high net worth individuals, 40% are companies and the remainder tour operators. This is a diverse spread which gives him access to the growing body of oligarchs in Russia, Europe and the Middle East. Mr Grabar has particularly good access to Russia’s wealthy elite as he has a part-Russian background and speaks Russian fluently: in fact, 20% of his clients are Russian and represent an important part of Avolus’s revenue.

Alexis cites one of his key skills as raising money from investors.’ I love fundraising. I think it is fun,’ he says. So perhaps one should not be surprised that his list of investors (and past investors) is star studded. It includes most notably, James Caan, one of the Dragons in the television programme Dragons Den who was looking to buy a plane, but bought shares instead.

Alexis Grabar’s capacity to attract large sums of money from wealthy high-flyers to fund his concerns is impressive. It goes hand in hand with his interest in supporting business ideas and turning them into profitable concerns. Alexis’ consulting and capital company Aviamedia Tech (a blend of aviation, media and technology) has served as an incubator for many small businesses, a number of which Mr Grabar has sold on. He speaks with passion about the cultural differences of the international venture capital sector, saying that ‘New ideas are always welcome in England. This is contrary to the perception in France. Many people have trusted us and given us the funding and the early growth of their business.’ Mr Grabar was also instrumental in the financing of the French magazine Zurban. He recalls, ‘I put together a team to do the exit strategy of a magazine in France called Zurban. Zurban was the Timeout of Paris, quite a successful one, with 90 people. It was backed by private equity money and sold to the Lagardère Group. I helped with a team of five students from HEC MBA in Paris to put the exit strategy together. So that was quite cool, and it was my

first successful entrepreneurial business.’In fact, Alexis Grabar, who is just 41, has had his own

meteoric career in industry whose common thread is aircraft. His first employer Aerospatiale sent him when he was still in his early twenties and a recent graduate from the Grenoble school of Management, to Russia. He says, ‘I was based in Moscow with the mission of trying to put together a Franco-Russian helicopter called Mil38. I was sent a bit as the forefront of French aerospace industry to understand how we could interact with the Russians. We created a joint venture in Moscow, and through my hard work and my trying to understand the Russians, we signed agreements with them.’ He recalls that at the time, ‘Russia was totally upside down, I met people who would become oligarchs. But at that stage they had not made their wealth.’ He would later call on these contacts to assist him launch Avolus.

He subsequently joined Airbus as a regional sales director, the youngest ever appointed. His first market was Tunisia, his second, Eastern Europe. His work timetable was breath-taking. ‘I was flying around, three destinations a week. I was on a plane 250 days in a year. But in three years I did 3 billion€ worth of contracts. I sold about 150 Airbus aircrafts. These were fascinating years. I would meet the French, British and German ambassadors, I was turning round struggling airlines,’ however he declined a promotion to vice president rank. ‘I wanted to take a new challenge.’

This was the cue for Mr Grabar to quit the corporate world and explore entrepreneurship. His MBA from HEC Paris and his Mid Career Master from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy on the American East Coast put him in touch with energetic US entrepreneurs, an experience enhanced by his short stay at Marquis Jet Europe, which was later acquired by the industry leader NetJet Europe. The stage was set for the launch of Mr Grabar’s own baby, Avolus. He remains at the cockpit and flying high. I NK

success story

Flying high, Avolus


Scene is set for London’s Olympic triumph

T his is the second Focus that INFO has published on the Olympic Games. The first appeared in March 2010 and

set out the broad picture. Our cover presented an image of the model of the stadium and we gave a platform to the Minister to talk about aspirations. Eighteen months on, we can now see the stadium as it will look on the opening day. There is now a much stronger sense of the impact the Games will make on London and the entire country. This is dramatic progress.

In this INFO’s Focus on the Games, we are honoured again to have the Minister for Sport and the Olympics, Hugh Robertson, give us a sense of the country’s preparedness for the Games launch, with less than a year to go.

While the Games are the showcase for the world’s premier sportsmen, that is not our focus. We are dedicated to covering the opportunities for business. JC Decaux, Andaz, Pascal Aussignac of Club Gascon, Deloitte, EDF Energy, and many others, tell us how they will reap commercial benefits both while the Games are in progress and during their legacy.

The enormous changes and implications for London’s infrastructure and industry are presented from the perspectives of the Greater London Authority and London and Partners.

The Chamber, for its part, is making a commitment to the Games. For example, we have linked with the

focus

French National Olympic and Paralympic Committees, as well as Le Public Système agency which will be managing the Club France where French activities will take place during the Games at One Old Billingsgate.

Sponsors, media and sportsmen associated to France will regard the Club France as their home during the Games. The Chamber has participated in an event with the French National Olympic Committee to show our members how they might use the multitude of facilities available at Club France. We were proud to have Denis Masseglia, the President of the French National Olympic Committee, as our guest of honour on this occasion.

Our Olympic commitment will be further confirmed when Paul Deighton, the chief executive of the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG), addresses our Gala Dinner on November 8. Mr Deighton is one of the leading administrators of the Games, and LOCOG is critical to the Games’ commercial success.

An updated news service dedicated to the 2012 Olympics on the Chamber’s website will keep members informed of developments, while INFO magazine will carry an article in each issue, up to August 2012, devoted to the Games.

As we enter the last lap before the 2012 opening, the Games will remain at the forefront of our consciousness. I

Business opportunities and the Olympics32 London Olympics: All set, and almost ready to go, says UK Minister34 The British Business Club – inviting the world to London 201236 Britain’s path to global success37 Games are good for Britain’s finances38 Sharing Olympic spirit on a screen near you39 Accommodating the Olympics boom – literally!40Commercial gateway to the Games41 A ‘French’ Chip and Fish at Westfield Stratford42 Jumping over the hurdle of disability

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Infrastructure, Operations in London 44 MakingLondonthestaroftheshow46 LondonPrepares48 Beatingtherush–transporttotheGames50 Readinessisall–preparingfortheOlympicchallenge51 London2012–catalystforalowercarbonfuture

Culture and perspectives52 AlittlecornerofFranceinLondon54 Artisticexplosiontomatchsportingprowess


focusOlympic facts and figures

immediate economic impacts during tHe seven weeks games

increase in consumer spending > £750 million

increase in economic output > £1.14 billion

Increase in UK residents’ incomes > £229 million

longer term economic impacts resulting from london 2012 (until 2015)

increase in economic output per year > £1.37 billion

total stimulus for the economy > £5.1 billion

Additional incomes to UK residents per year > £296 million

Overall expected growth of the national economy > 3.5%

Additional jobs per year > 17,900

Overall, the retail, leisure and travel sectors look set to be the biggest winners from The Games, benefiting from a combined spending injection of £508.4 million in seven weeks.

High street retailers

£184.8m

the Hotel sector

£122.6m

entertainment, food & drink industry

£81.5m

supermarkets

£79.9m

airlines, car Hire & Other travel sectors

£39.7m

increase in consumer spending in retail, leisure and travel

sectors

Source : The Visa Report. London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games : expenditure and economic impact


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London Olympics: All set, and almost ready to go, says UK Minister

Could you describe the uK’s state of preparedness for the 2012 Olympic Games?With just under a year to go we are in a really good position. The construction of the Park is now 88 per cent complete with all the major venues like the Stadium and Aquatics Centre finished. We are now in the testing stage and will be holding 26 test events over the next year to make sure that everything works properly at Games time.

Has anything arisen in the course of preparations that has surprised you, in a positive or negative way, such that you have had to alter your plans?I have been really impressed by the success of the test events which I have been to both in London and Weymouth. The purpose of testing is to identify any problems so they can be fixed for the Games and there are a number of lessons that have been learnt, but it is clear from the testing that the preparations for the Games are in excellent shape.

Visitors to the Games will find London a warm and friendly place, while businesspeople will

encounter an investor-friendly climate. The 2012 Olympics will have something for everyone,

says Hugh Robertson, the British Minister for Sport and the Olympics

Could you assess the implications of the Games for London?The Games came to London on the back of a promise to regenerate a deprived part of London. The East London community has already seen significant improvements to transport in the area and will also see social, sporting and economic benefits. The development of the Olympic Park post-Games will bring thousands of new homes, improved infrastructure, energy systems, new education and health facilities to the area. Thousands of people have benefitted from jobs and training during the construction phase of the Games.

Do you feel more could be done for the rest of the country? If so what?Hosting the Olympic and Paralympics in London is a once in a life time opportunity to inspire the whole country to get more involved in sport. Working with Sport England, we have launched Places People Play giving more people the chance to get involved in structure sports programmes in top quality facilities. We have also launched the School Games bringing a new focus on competitive sport in schools to engage and excite children of all abilities. The first national final is being planned to take place in the Olympic Park in May next year, young athletes will be able to use the facilities before the Games commence. Yes, the majority of the action will be taking place in the Olympic Park in east London, but we hope that certainly won’t stop people to feel inspired in other parts of the UK.

How well is the City prepared, in terms of logistics and transportation, some concerns widely voiced in the media and elsewhere. Can London’s infrastructure deal with this massive influx of tourists, visitors and participants?We recognise that transport is a challenge for the London Games as it would be in any major global capital. It is the first Olympics for some time that will be

Hugh Robertson at an event at Trafalgar Square marking one year to the London 2012 Olympics

Part one: Business opportunities and the Olympics


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held in the heart of the city but I have every confidence that London’s world leading transport system can and will cope with demands the Games bring. We have increased capacity through huge investment in transport infrastructure improvements and working closely with London based businesses to encourage a flexible approach to working patterns for staff during Games time to ease the numbers on the underground.

How well has the ticketing process worked, given some disquiet that insufficient tickets have been put at the disposal of ordinary British applicants?It was always going to be a big challenge to please everyone. The simple fact is that demand for tickets far outstretched supply, but the London Organising Committee is doing everything it can to make sure that as many sports fans as possible are given the opportunity to see some of the action at the venues.

Legacy has been at the forefront of planning. Would you agree this has been a key philosophy of the planners and one that will come to the fore the closer we get to next August?Legacy has been integral to the London Games from the moment we started writing the bid book. The legacy implications of everything we do is considered from the outset because it is at the heart of our Games. The benefits of this approach can already be seen throughout the programme from the infrastructure developments to the investment in sport and the establishment of a company to manage the Olympic Park after the Games.

How has the deeply uncertain economic environment impacted on the cost of the Games? Is there any possibility that the Government will be called on to put more state funds at the disposal of Games organisers, as D-Day beckons?No, we are very confident with the budget for the 2012 Games. As part of this Government’s Spending Review settlement, the Olympic Delivery Authority’s budget was actually reduced by £20m achieved through savings and efficiencies. LOCOG has also said that it has met its sponsorship targets a year ahead of the Games.

Could you describe the image you are seeking to convey and conjure up for the 2012 Games.I want London to stage a great Games that puts athletes at the forefront of everything we do and offer a warm and friendly welcome to our many visitors from abroad. Hosting the Games in London is also a great opportunity for the UK to show off the talent we have and encourage overseas businesses to invest in this country. The UK is also a place that has plenty to offer as a possible holiday destination. I

Unity out of Division: the London Olympics, Past and Present

In 1948, Lord Burghley, the Sebastian Coe of the last London Olympics, promised the games to be ‘a warm flame of hope for a better understanding in the world which has burned so low’. The “Austerity Games”, as they were known, were filled with the echoes of conflict and old rivalries.

Germany and Japan’s competitors were forbidden from participating so as to deny the defeated powers the opportunity to claw back some small victory on the sports field. And for the first time the divided and recently independent nations of India and Pakistan sent their own teams to compete at an international arena.

Even amongst the victorious allies of the war there was still division – the former gymnast Marie Provaznikova refused to return to her native Czechoslovakia after its absorption into the Soviet Bloc, hinting at the rifts between East and West that were yet to come.

But in 2011, whilst the notion of an Austerity Games is far from unfamiliar, thanks to London’s International Inspiration programme, 2012 looks set to be a games of international unity and cooperation. Teams from a record-breaking 200 nations will travel to the capital. Nor does it end there. From Indonesia, where Olympic money will be used to organise sport to heal the rift between feuding religious groups, to Jordan, where sport will help to integrate refugees from neighbouring territories, 64 years later the London games are once more bearing Lord Burghley’s torch of understanding and cooperation and are again asking the world to ‘live as one’. I

Fascinating similarities and encouraging differences emerge when one views London’s last hosting of the Games through the prism of 2012. David R.W Thompson of Appointments bi-language explains…


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The British Business Club – inviting the world to London 2012

The British Business Club is an initiative developed by UK Trade & Investment, in partnership with the

Department of Business, Innovation and Skills, London & Partners and the London Business Network. It will give UK’s business community the opportunity to engage with their international counterparts visiting the capital in 2012 and showcase their skills, experience and expertise. The programme aims to open up partnering, inward investment and export opportunities off the back of the experience and successes of delivering the London 2012 Games.

The foundation of the British Business Club is an interactive online portal which will allow both domestic and overseas businesses to prepare, communicate and interact with one another in the lead up to and during the 2012 Games. Companies of all sizes can register to become members of the British Business Club free of charge and profile their products and services to overseas business visitors. An online partnering tool provided as part of the hub will allow business visitors to identify businesses that are of interest to them, contact them through video conference and social media, set up meetings during Games-time and select a venue from a flexible pool of meeting locations across the UK.

The hub will also be populated with a comprehensive calendar of Games-related business activity and events; thus providing a single point of access for businesses wanting to find out about and participate in London 2012-related business activity. For example, the London Business Network is currently working with a myriad of partner business organisations and trade associations to formulate a series of hospitality events to introduce international business visitors to domestic companies across sectors spanning Construction, New Media, Security, Professional Services, Sustainability, Retail & Hospitality and Transport.

In the summer of 2012, the eyes of the world will turn to London. However the biggest sporting

event in the world will not just attract tourist visitors. Tens of thousands of business

representatives will visit the capital in the lead up to and during the Games, says Brett Taylor,

CEO of London Business Network

The British Business Club will be launched in autumn 2011 and will be available for businesses to register on in the lead up to the London 2012 Games. The facility will also have a life after the Games, as the primary tool for UK businesses wanting to access other Olympic and Paralympic Games as well as other major sporting events such as the Football and Rugby World Cups. I

If you would like more information about the programme, please contact Brett Taylor, CEO London Business Network on 020 7665 1429.

Prime Minister David Cameron and Mayor of London Boris Johnson in front of the countdown clock in Trafalgar Square

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The Maracanã Stadium in Brazil, seen here during the opening ceremony of the 2007 Pan American Games, will host the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2016 Games

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Britain’s path to global success

Hosting the Olympic and Paralympic Games is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. For the UK, it

offers a unique and unprecedented opportunity to showcase its abilities on the world stage – not only as a leading provider of sporting occasions but as a source of innovative products and solutions across many capabilities.

Pivotal roleFrom cutting-edge design, sustainable construction, low-carbon solutions to high-tech infrastructure, overseas firms can tap into a wealth of British expertise.

The Games are providing a catalyst for the development of new business – whether inspiring British firms to expand internationally or encouraging overseas firms to do business in the UK. And UKTI has a pivotal role to play in both.

The UKTI initiative, Host2Host, for example, aims to maximise the benefits for those UK businesses working on the London 2012 Games. By creating links and sharing best practice with future host cities of major sports events, Host2Host seeks to ensure businesses

are well placed to win future contracts home and away, as part of its 2012 Games legacy.

Eye on Brazil…Certainly, a particular focus will be the opportunities that present themselves in Brazil - namely the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 Olympic and Paralymic Games. Under UKTI’s Host2Host agreement with Brazil, UK firms are already nurturing strong links with leading Brazilian contracting and engineering companies and other key firms.

With the London Games set to be the greenest on record, and Brazil committed to delivering a greener Olympics, one way the UK is sharing its own low carbon capabilities is through UK Know How. This initiative, developed by UKTI, brings together a series of green related events. And these missions, seminars and exhibitions in Brazil all focus on the environment, construction, sports infrastructure, ICT and energy sectors.

Pioneers in technologyIndeed, it’s not only low carbon where collaborative partnerships are being fostered. UKTI has created the Tech City Investment Organisation, led by a team of entrepreneurs to help drive technology-led investment, new talent and innovation. Tech City is the rapidly growing cluster of pioneering technology firms, stretching from the dynamic streets of Shoreditch to the booming heartland of Stratford. And it is helping to create the world’s next generation of high-tech entrepreneurs.

London’s 2012 legacy will stretch well beyond the last athlete packing up his shoes and heading home. It will be seen in the communities of East London and up and down the country; in the businesses that are exporting their expertise; and those that have set up in the UK. And it will set a precedent for future hosts around the world. I

With one year to go until the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, UK Trade & Investment

outlines how it is helping to deliver an international business legacy for the city and nation


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The Olympic Stadium

T he total economic impact of the Games is the sum of direct, indirect, and induced impacts resulting

from the Games. Economists say the direct impact can be attributed to purchases of Games organisers in the preparation and execution of the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The budget for the London 2012 Olympics is currently £9.35bn, which includes a £2.7bn contingency fund. It has increased fourfold since Britain won the bid in July 2005. £6 billion is coming directly from government.

This level of public funding, at a time when public services are coming under increasing pressure, has been criticised in the press. On the other hand, the Government’s spending could be seen to stimulate the economy and generate jobs for local people. For example, according to the Olympic Delivery Authority, more than 30,000 new jobs have been created since 2009.

The London Development Agency and the five ‘host’ London boroughs (Greenwich, Hackney, Newham, Tower Hamlets and Waltham Forest) have set out detailed plans for regeneration of the area over a 30-year development period after 2012. Other planned benefits include 10,000

Games are good for Britain’s finances

new homes, in addition to up to 3,000 in the Olympic village; a National Skills Academy for Sports housed in the Olympic stadium, and a hub for creative and technology-based industries.

Outside of London, regional development agencies are involved in skills development work linked to the Games. For instance, the East of England Development Agency is working with the Legacy Trust to encourage unemployed people to take on volunteer roles in culture and sport in the build-up to the 2012 Games. The aim is that volunteers will gain skills and experience which will potentially help them back into paid work. There are also expected to be supply chain opportunities for up to 75,000 businesses across the country to supply goods and services to the Games.

An early assessment of the economic benefits to be gained from the Games was undertaken in 2005 by PriceWaterhouseCoopers. This concluded that the UK would benefit to the tune of £1.9 billion. A post-Games analysis has been commissioned by the Department of Culture, Media and Sport. This will be undertaken by Grant Thornton using a team which includes Ecorys and Loughborough University. The team will undertake a comprehensive ‘meta-evaluation’ of the impacts and legacy of the Games. I NK

The economic impact of hosting the Olympics is under the spotlight, in the light of cuts in

government spending and jobs. So how much London 2012 is costing and what is the likely economic

impact on London and the UK more widely? INFO has done an assessment

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Sharing Olympic spirit on a screen near you

In 1996 when Nike plastered their ‘swoosh’ across billboards in Atlanta, upstaging the official sponsor

Reebok, Outdoor’s central role in Olympic marketing was confirmed. Fast forward to today and Outdoor advertising is the only medium subject to special restrictions during the Games, designed to outlaw ‘ambush’ marketing and protect sponsors’ investment.

Sites available to allIn a tacit recognition of Outdoor’s power, LOCOG asked all Outdoor companies to give sponsors priority access to book poster sites during the Games. Except for a few sites reserved for sponsors near venues, Outdoor sites are now available to all.

The fact that there are no restrictions placed on TV, radio, internet or press, demonstrates that Outdoor offers something unique – it reaches audiences nationwide, and it cannot be turned over, switched off or ignored. This is key as 2012 will be very much an ‘Outdoor’ Games, with people watching the latest events on screens in city centres UK-wide. With 3.5 million travelling to the UK for the Games, international brands can capitalise on these increased summer audiences.

Honing in on transport hubsPosters will greet consumers arriving at airports such as Heathrow or at St Pancras and Ebbsfleet International stations. Despite being a major gateway to the UK, Ebbsfleet is not ring-fenced for sponsors and offers a blank slate for brands to communicate their message.

Other ‘golden ticket’ opportunities fall outside the LOCOG agreement too, from the interior sites at Westfield Stratford to London’s Liverpool Street Station – an exceptional way for a finance brand to reach audiences inside the Square Mile.

According to LOCOG, this will be a public transport Games, with 80 percent of people travelling to venues by

Olympics 2012 will feature communications technology like no other Games before. One key

player will be Digital Outdoor, a platform that JCDecaux launched in 2008. Here Kasia Suswillo,

Head of Marketing Communications for JCDecaux, explains what it can deliver…

rail. From a media perspective this has led to exciting new spaces being opened up. JCDecaux, for instance, recently unveiled the first wall wraps at London Bridge station. And in a special concession for the Games, English Heritage and Network Rail have given special permission for giant wall wraps of St Pancras International Station.

Reaching beyond LondonThis will not simply be a ‘London’ Games – new digital advertising sites will enable brands to reach mass audiences nationwide. Unlike the last Games in Beijing, when LOCOG congratulated athletes on a handful of screens in London, in 2012 there will be displays in city centres, shopping centres and on public transport.

As the World Cup and Wimbledon has shown, Outdoor comes into its own during national events. The digital platform enables brands to capture the spirit of the country with time-sensitive updates and multiple creative initiatives. And by cleverly using the potential of transport hubs and other ‘gateways’ to the Games, Outdoor is set to play a central role in 2012.

Echoing the ‘faster, higher, stronger’ Olympic motto proposed by Pierre de Coubertin, the father of the modern Games, Outdoor advertising will be more flexible, all-pervasive and targeted than ever before. I

JC Decaux outdoor advertising for the Games


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Accommodating the Olympics boom – literally!

How do you think the Olympic Games will be stimulating the hospitality industry?The Olympic Games will take place during what is economically speaking one of the lowest periods of the year. August is usually a slow month, but the Games will reverse that tendency. Even one year ahead of the Games, London is effervescent and the prospect of the Olympics is stimulating demand in our sector.

Are London hotels partly or fully booked already?Indeed they are! Most hotels were in fact booked by the LOCOG as soon as London was officially appointed as the Olympic city for the 2012 Games. The LOCOG contracted an inventory of hotels, and having thus secured rooms in most London hotels they were then approached by their clients from all over the world, both corporate and individuals. After that, LOCOG has acted as an intermediary between these visitors and the hotels.

Are you planning to organise anything specific for the Games period at Andaz?At Andaz, we have five bars and five restaurants and we plan to broadcast the Games and create a vibrant atmosphere around them. As there are many events, we will broadcast different games in different places in the hotel. We are determined that our guests can enjoy the performances, the atmosphere and the Olympic spirit.

Have you changed your rates in anticipation of the affluence during the Games? Yes and no! LOCOG and the hotels agreed on a formula of rate increase to ensure that prices would remain under control. It means that rates can and probably will increase in response to the high demand, but only to the extent defined in this agreement.

Does the industry expect a downturn after the Games? How are you preparing for it?To be honest we are not expecting a downturn.

Arnaud de Saint-Exupéry, general manager of Liverpool Street’s prestigious 5-star Andaz Hotel,

explains how, with one year to go, new hotels open, many existing ones take on a new lease of

life, and all hoteliers are preparing for an Olympic bonanza

September is usually a very busy month. June and July will be particularly eventful, as all the corporate businesses involved in the Olympics will come beforehand and organise preparatory meetings and events. A huge marketing campaign will be launched before in order to display London in front of the eyes of the whole world. Besides, other events are taking place just before the Olympics, namely the Queen’s Diamond jubilee in June and the Farnborough International Air Show in July. All this will ensure a continuously affluent period throughout the whole summer.

What about the hotel industry more generally? Have new hotels been built in anticipation for the Games?Different projects have been undertaken. Three hotels have opened in Stratford and a hotel is opening next to London Bridge with several more planned in the City of London. Some construction projects had been slowed down by the crisis. Now they have been resumed, and the Olympics effect has significantly re-dynamised the sector.

Have you undertaken works of refurbishment before the Olympics?Andaz has refurbished one of its restaurants and in general, hotels have tried to finish their renovations in 2011 to minimize the work in 2012. On the whole, I believe the hotel industry is ready for the kick-off!

Andaz is one of the main 5-star hotels in the city and it is one stop away from Stratford, which means it is extremely well situated for the Games. This is a great opportunity for Andaz but more generally it will further push London as a worldwide market.

The Games will draw the eye of the world onto London, even more so than was the case for Beijing, which was less of an international city, or for Athens. I am convinced that London is going to enjoy a fantastic hype. It is already a very attractive global metropolis and the Games will emphasise that fact to an even greater extent. I


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N ext year seven out of every ten Olympics spectators may pass through Westfield Stratford City en

route to the Games. Europe’s largest urban retail centre will also serve a 4.1 million catchment population with a £3.24bn weighted spend for years afterwards. And it constitutes part of one of Britain’s largest regeneration projects to date.

Retail magnetLike its Shepherd’s Bush branch, which opened in October 2008, the 1.9m square feet complex includes 300 retail outlets, from giants such as John Lewis, Waitrose and Marks & Spencer to more bespoke smaller stores.

Westfield also has some 50 restaurants and cafés, a 17-screen all-digital Vue cinema and a 14-lane bowling alley with cocktail bar. Its Studio East cultural panel

Commercial gateway to the GamesEurope’s largest urban shopping complex, Westfield Stratford City, opened its doors on 13

September. Lawrence Joffe sees what is “in store”…

Cranes hover around the top of the ArcelorMittal Orbit

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displays works by Tracy Emin and local artists. And all is encased in an enticing three-storey high curved mall, which connects with Stratford International and regional stations via a 24-hour “lifestyle street”. Nearly a train a minute goes to London.

Its Great Eastern Market makes Westfield the first shopping centre to encompass fresh food stalls. And its website showcases the daring dress sense and hairstyles of local denizens – trends that may go global with Olympic exposure! Likewise the £1.45bn complex will create 8,500 permanent retail jobs, besides the 18,000 already employed in construction. Westfield will also house three hotels and offer an eventual 1.1m square foot in modern office space for leasing at Stratford Place and First Avenue.

Park lifeBesides the shopping centre itself lies the adjoining Olympic Park, whose 700 acres make it the largest to be opened in Europe in 150 years. Its scenic north park will feature revitalised waterways, pleasant landscaping and play areas criss-crossed with pedestrian and cycle paths. Up to 16,000 new homes and community facilities in five new adjoining neighbourhoods, which evoke Georgian and Victorian villages and public spaces, should go some way towards meeting London’s urgent housing needs. This should introduce a human aspect to what might otherwise lapse into an urban sprawl.

Yet if one prefers to forgo the rural idyll for something more dynamic, there is always the south plaza, a locus for cultural collaborations, events and installations, which Westfield hopes will blossom into East London’s equivalent of the South Bank Centre. At its centre will be the 115m high ArcelorMittal Orbit, designed by Anish Kapoor as the UK’s tallest sculpture. Equally iconic will be the Olympic Stadium and the Aquatics Centre, when pressed into communal use post-2012.

Back in 2009 Mayor Boris Johnson stated: “Westfield is an inspiring hub for Britain and provides a fantastic legacy for generations to come” – words as true today as when he said them. I LRJ


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A ‘French’ Chip and Fish at Westfield Stratford

When the multitudes throng to the Olympic Games next year, they will have the opportunity

to taste some of the country’s best examples of French cooking. It will be provided by Pascal Aussignac, the Chef at the Michelin-starred Club Gascon, the Comptoir Gascon and Le Cercle restaurants in London.

‘Chip and Fish’, the name of Mr Aussignac’s new brand, is located in the Westfield Stratford mall, and will be along the path trod by the many visitors en route to the Olympic show. In fact, Mr Aussignac is aware that these diners will be coming from many parts of the world, and have diverse tastes. So he is adjusting his menu accordingly. There will be salmon a la plancha for Spanish people, prawns in a Chinese sauce for visitors from the Orient, mussels with curry for those from the Indian sub-continent. Other ethnic dishes will be available for those from remote parts of the World. In fact a positive smorgasbord of cultures and cuisines.

Pascal Aussignac’s ‘Chip and Fish’ brand was launched in the Westfield Shepherd’s Bush mall, and expanded to Westfield Stratford City recently. He says the restaurant is in Stratford for the longterm and not merely there to catch the Olympic traffic. But he accepts, ‘when we heard that the Olympics were going to be held in London, we thought that it was the icing on the cake!’

The Olympics will also pose a particular challenge to this masterly French Chef, who is more used to providing very high quality food to fewer discerning people than excellent food to the large numbers expected to flood to London for the Games. ‘There are 70 restaurants for now in Westfield Stratford City but people know there will be some winners and losers, even though we are not playing in the same field. Visitors want to eat well, cheaply and quickly. We will probably need to hire more staff during the Games but we usually have around 12 people already in our team to deliver a good quality service’. I NK

Chip + Fish at the newly opened Westfield Stratford

The pursuit of excellence is the Olympic motif. And that is true not only in sporting matters.

The master chef at Club Gascon Pascal Aussignac has the same goals for cuisine. He has opened

a gourmet ‘Chip and Fish’ restaurant at Westfield Stratford. This promises to be a success both

during and beyond the Games


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at Beijing in 2008. Next year 166 nations will take part, making London probably the largest Paralympics ever.

Nine of the 20 Paralympic sports will be played in London’s purpose-built Olympic Park. Another six take place at the ExCel Centre, while there will be shooting at Woolwich Royal Artillery Barracks, rowing at Dorney Lake, cycling at Regent’s Park, equestrian events at Greenwich Park, and sailing around Weymouth.

Boost from businessesMany companies are supporting disabled athletes in the run-up to the Games, with Sainsbury’s the first Paralympics-only sponsor and largest private funder to date. On 9-10 September 2011, meanwhile, Chamber member EDF saw top athletes “take on” the public outside Paris’s Town Hall; while British gold medallist Paralympian Hazel Robson has trained staff from EDF Energy, Sunderland, for this year’s BUPA Great North Run1.

Deloitte, another supporter, has put £1.7m into Deloitte Disability Sport, which together with ParalympicsGB and SportsAid will enable 1,500 disabled sportspeople to perform by late 2012. Above all commercial backers are establishing a legacy – long after the official games are over. I 1The BUPA Great North Run is the world’s most popular half marathon road running event.

Oscar Pistorius gets ready to give a running demonstration

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Jumping over the hurdle of disability

Remember the chant “Football’s coming home” when England hosted the European Championships

in 1996? Well, similar voices might be heard when London hosts the Paralympics between 29 August and 9 September next year, because the precursor event, the Stoke Mandeville Wheelchair Games, was first held in England in 1948.

All manner of gamesThe Paralympics showcases dedicated athletes excelling in a variety of ingenuously adapted sports. These include wheelchair tennis, which enables equal competition with able-bodied players, and archery, athletics, cycling, equestrian, small-teams football, judo, power-lifting, rowing, sailing, shooting, swimming and sitting volleyball. There is also basketball, fencing and rugby for wheelchair users, as well as goal-ball for blind players, and boccia, where players toss leather balls at a target. Given its ancient Greek origins, boccia seems a worthy contender to join the broader Olympic pantheon!

A bold dream realisedThe Paralympics is a testimony to the human spirit with profound UK connections. War-wounded wheelchair-bound British ex-servicemen and women decided to compete in their own “parallel Olympics” alongside the regular 1948 Games in London. Dr Ludwig Guttmann, the brains behind the venture, believed that sport was excellent therapy and would enhance their self-respect.

Soon the Paralympics grew into a regular international competition with non-veterans first participating at the Rome Games of 1960. Today competitors are chosen from five disability-specific categories: amputee, cerebral palsy, visually impaired, wheelchair, and the catch-all category, ‘les autres’.

Largest Games ever?London last hosted the Paralympics in 1984, coinciding with the Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. Since then the two competitions have been held in tandem and 3,900 Paralympic athletes from 146 countries competed

With the eyes of the world focused on the Summer Olympics many may overlook the associated

Paralympics competition. In fact, based on past evidence, argues Lawrence Joffe, they should be

every bit as exciting as the better known Games


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Making London the star of the show

Could you give a sense of what London will look like for the Olympic Games, 2012The London Experience is about showcasing London to its best effect during the Games period.

This means putting up flags, banners, sails, to make the city feel like a Host City. It is really about preparing the city for the games. This includes erecting and unveiling Olympic Rings and the Paralympic Agitos around the city. A large set of Rings has already been unveiled at St Pancras International, and Olympic and Paralympic iconography will go up at several other sites.

We will also have the ‘Live Sites’, where we will have large screens to show the games and activity right throughout the Games period. We will also have stages where we will have local acts and some very large international acts, providing entertainment. It is about getting Londoners and business to engage with the games, to be part of the games – even if they haven’t been lucky enough to get tickets to specific events.

How can you spread the Olympic message outside of the Games area itself?The GLA is looking specifically at areas of high footfall around the capital – tourist attractions, museum quarters, transport hubs – in addition to places around the [Olympic] venues, to identify the specific dressing we should be putting in those areas. This is quite targeted work to ensure that we have the appropriate look.

We are also co-ordinating with the 33 local authorities across the city to ensure that when we put the dressing up around the capital, the look and feel of the host city as Olympic city is extended to the outer suburbs – not just in central London or the venues. We have taken the look and feel from the games venues and have extended that throughout the capital. So over the games period you will have a consistent look and

As the Director of the London 2012 City Operations Programme at the Greater London Authority,

Vince Fihosy reports to Mayor Boris Johnson and has responsibility for preparing London for the

Games. Here, he gives INFO magazine a unique insight into how London will look for the greatest

games on earth

feel. Then that theme will flow right the way through. Previous host cities have aspired to that, but for various reasons it has been too difficult to achieve.

So what is that theme, what does it mean?LOCOG and the GLA have designed a consistent colour palette and design. So, as you walk through London and go into the venues themselves you will have that same experience. We want to make sure that we have a celebratory atmosphere that we create an environment for people who don’t have tickets, or don’t have a real interest in the sport, to still feel that buzz during the whole Games period.

What is your approach to the organisation of the Games, as this must be a major task?Hosting the Games is a phenomenal logistical exercise. It is the biggest peace-time event any city could ever put on. So there are significant challenges. But we have a very good multi-agency approach to taking this forward. We are working exceedingly well with LOCOG, security services, police, the 33 London boroughs, Transport for London (TfL) and central Government to be in the best possible place. We are heavily involved in the C3 – command, communication and co-ordination - structure for the Games. London will have a control centre which will manage the GLA services, as well as co-ordinating information from the local authorities. That will link in and integrate with all of the other co-ordinating centres.

How much more do you have to do in your preparations? We recently hosted “one year to go” events in Trafalgar Square to mark important milestones before the Olympic and Paralympic Games (respectively), and the Mayor said, tongue in cheek, “... The Olympic

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Can you give us any details about what will make London different?One part is the experience: showcasing London to its best effect, and within that are some creative spectaculars. These will be showpiece moments. You can liken them to the fireworks at Sydney Harbour Bridge, with rings and rockets firing off the top. That is people’s abiding memory of Sydney. We will have similar picture postcard moments for London in 2012. We will dress bridges around the city, specific dressing for the river – it is a fantastic setting and an intrinsic part of our plans to showcase the capital.

What is your budget?We are developing partnerships with the private sector to help deliver several projects, with minimum possible costs to the public purse. So, as much as possible we want to leverage sponsorship, form enabling partnerships with private sector organisations - for example working with Games sponsors. We are trying to optimise the public/private sector contribution in a number of areas. A good example of this is the deal announced earlier this year by the Mayor between City Hall, the City of London Corporation and London 2012 Sustainability partners, EDF and GE to install a state-of-the-art energy-efficient lighting system on Tower Bridge. I NK

Venues are already so ready that we might as well call a snap Olympics tomorrow and catch the rest of the world napping. And above all the people of London will be ready to welcome the world’s finest athletes to the greatest games that have ever been held in the greatest city on earth.”

We are far more advanced than any other host city has been at this stage. We have a testing and readiness programme; we have had test events over the past week or so, led by LOCOG. We are standing up all of the other domains and centres around that, to build our confidence.

What is the transport challenge?The ambition is for the 2012 Games to be a public transport Games. All Games ticket holders will be provided with a day travel card, with their competition ticket, to encourage use of the transport network. That is a huge commitment. People can then get to the games in the most appropriate manner. And it works to our strengths, in terms of transport network and capabilities.

Now we recognise that there will be some strains on the system. So part of our message is: Londoners going about their daily business should recognise what those challenges are, and plan early enough to respond to that. So TfL are talking to visitors at the moment and engaging with businesses, big and small, to ensure a good plan.

The “one year to go” event in Trafalgar Square


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London Prepares

Attracting each sectorLondon is globally renowned as a world class destination for visitors, investors and international students – and the city’s position on the world stage has been further enhanced by its role as Olympic host city for 2012. The 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games will bring a year-long celebration with a host of unique, compelling and once-in-a-lifetime events for visitors to the city and Londoners alike.

London has already been Europe’s best city to do business in for more than 20 years and 2012 has brought to the city a wealth of new opportunities for international companies looking to set up or expand their business in the capital. Business prospects, particularly in the creative and technology industries, have meant that London & Partners has already exceeded its target of creating 5000 jobs through inward investment as a result of 2012 Games opportunities, and is fully committed to delivering many more in the lead up to the games.

The Games also represent an amazing opportunity for the events industry in London, as event planners look to take advantage of the ‘buzz’ that’s set to take over the capital in 2012. The Olympic Games provide a key motivational tool or theme for business events and organisers can take advantage of the many new venues, hotels, attractions and transport links throughout the city. The exciting programme of cultural and sporting events taking place around Games time, not only provide fantastic, free downtime activities for attendees, but allows event planners to use the games as a backdrop to incentivise delegates with the opportunity to be at the heart of a global celebration.

It’s not only in the business world that London

With less than a year to go until the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic games, the capital is getting

ready to host the biggest event on the planet. Gordon Innes, the CEO of London & Partners,

explains how the official promotional agency for the city is looking ahead to the Games and

beyond to see how the capital is harnessing this monumental opportunity

is set to benefit from the Games. In terms of higher education, London is already the world’s leading destination for international students from around the globe. A survey carried out by London & Partners has revealed that 21% of the 105,000 foreign students in the capital felt enticed to come and study in London to experience the many exciting opportunities that the Olympic Games have brought to the city. With London already renowned for being a breeding ground for the world’s best talent, the legacy of this increased interest will be felt for years to come.

A city transformedThe city has been working hard on improvements to its infrastructure in preparation for the influx of visitors and delegates. London is already feeling the ‘halo effect’ of the Games, as literally thousands of developments take place that will bring lasting benefits to London and Londoners. A report created by London & Partners revealed that an excess of £11bn has been invested into projects directly benefiting visitors to the city from October 2009 up to the Olympic Games in 2012.

Transport for London is investing £6.3 billion into improvements to London’s public transport system which will also meet the future needs of London. London 2012 is aiming for close to 100% of spectators to get to the Games by public transport, and all Games tickets will include a free public transport pass for the day of the event. Alternatively there is the option to hire one of the 8000 bicycles that will make up the extended Barclays Cycle Hire scheme, an initiative from the Mayor of London.

As well as improved transport, major new hotels have opened up and existing ones have been refurbished,


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adding to the already extensive and diverse range of accommodation options in London. The choice is endless, with new luxury 5 star hotels including Waldorf Astoria Syon Park, the Marriot St Pancras Renaissance and the Corinthia London in Whitehall, as well as serviced apartments, B&B’s and other types of budget accommodation.

Developments in East London are transforming the area around the Olympic Park, and in other parts of the city, the already iconic skyline is set to be transformed with another new architectural landmark. When completed, The Shard will be the tallest building in Western Europe, home to high quality offices, top restaurants and a 5-star Shangri-La hotel, topped by London’s tallest observation tower.

A lasting legacyThere is no doubt that the Games will leave London with an even richer and more diverse offering for all kinds of visitors, which will continue to be enjoyed for many years to come.

In terms of a boost to visitor numbers, the Government has identified that an increase in tourism numbers and spend will be a number one legacy from the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The regeneration of East London will be heavily

supported by the Olympic Development Authority, who have announced that 75 pence in every £1 spent is being invested in developing the area, so that everyone, from residents to visitors, businesses to students can benefit. A great example of how the area is developing is the brand new shopping centre, Westfield Stratford City. Launched in September this year, the new Westfield is set to become the biggest indoor shopping centre in Europe, bringing with it thousands of employment opportunities and local shopping for all budgets.

Post-games, businesses can take advantage of the brand new and permanent Olympic venues as conference and incentive venues, or make use of the media and broadcast centre which will be repurposed as Stratford Business Park. In addition, the legacy of 2012 will leave a raft of new sporting spaces and brand new visitor attractions including the revived canals and waterways of the River Lea and one of the largest urban parks created in Europe for more than 150 years - the Olympic Park.

Thanks to the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, London has never been a more attractive city to visit, invest and study in. As a capital that is always evolving and never predictable, the future has never been brighter. I

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Beating the rush – transport to the Games

Fully 5.3 million extra visitors may descend on London during the 2012 Games, which spells a

potential cultural and financial boon to the capital. Yet can a metropolis already under strain from regular daily commuters manage the additional load? And how will transport providers like Eurostar, Brittany Ferries and Air France handle the anticipated influx to London by land, sea and air?

Happily, city planners and Chamber member companies alike seem to have anticipated potential problems. Their approach is based on sensible planning – or to borrow an appropriately athletic analogy, they have chosen to run a marathon, not a sprint. Not that 2012 is just for slowcoaches. A centrepiece of the Olympic-inspired transport revolution is the Javelin shuttle service, whose trains already run at 140mph from Ashford in Kent to London St Pancras.

Bolstering infrastructureFor its part Transport for London (TfL) is overseeing investment of £7bn towards reviving London’s transport

Can major changes to London’s transport system really cope with next year’s expected crush of

Olympic tourists and spectators? And how will they get to London in the first place? Lawrence

Joffe hazards answers to these vexing questions…

infrastructure. ODA is contributing £560m towards these projects. All told 30 significant improvements are now completed, or will be by the end of the year. One project valued at £125m involves renovating Stratford Station, adjacent to the Stadium, with added platforms and lifts.

The number of passengers using Stratford may well double from 2008 to 2016. New carriages have been ordered and existing lines are gaining extra cars (carriages). TfL also plans to add 300 fuel-efficient diesel-electric hybrid buses to its current fleet of 56 by 2012, while West Ham station is enhancing its capacity with temporary materials that can be recycled after 2012.

The ODA has contracted 300 coaches to shuttle spectators to the Olympic Park, and £80m is going towards boosting capacity on the Docklands Light Railway system. Another ODA programme, Pace, aims for sustainability and lower CO2 emissions. It is building 80km of cycling and walking routes in 152 local authority schemes, plus thousands of cycle parking facilities, according to plan first revealed in 2007. The proximity of the Olympic Park’s eight sports venues, predicts Pace, will reduce the need for transport between venues. Thus the unusual centralisation of these Games in a city centre should benefit commuters, while Londoners are already reaping benefits, before the Games themselves begin. That said, the surest way to avoid a crush is to amend one’s transport habits and expectations, to stagger journeys or consider alternative routes, suggests campaigns run from the Mayor’s office.

Javelins before, to and at the GamesOne key component of getting “punters” to the Games will be the Channel Tunnel Rail Link, or High Speed 1, the first major new railway built in the UK in a century. Its second phase was completed in November 2007 and Eurostar staff at St. Pancras

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a full service of high speed services operated by South Eastern rail between London and Kent began regular routes in December 2009. With maximum speeds of 330km/hr over a 68 mile stretch linking the Channel Tunnel exit to St Pancras, it has cut travel times to Paris to two hours and 15 minutes.

St Pancras acts as an interchange between Eurostar, the Channel Tunnel Rail Link, Midland Mainline, Thameslink and number of London Underground lines. Joining the network at Ebbsfleet is a domestic service which uses Japanese “bullet”-style Javelins trains made by Hitachi. Currently there are 29 Javelin trains in service. And earlier next year several 340-seater Javelins will start to provide the final seven-minute leg of the journey from St Panras to Stratford East London, and the main Olympics site itself.

Stars of rail and trackAnother rail-based enterprise that is gearing up for the Games is Eurostar, a tier three sponsor of the Olympics, the official “rail services provider” to the Games, and also a partner of the French and Belgian Olympic Committees.

Legacy is a core feature of their project, as exemplified in their one-year-to-go celebrations at the Eurostar terminal in London St Pancras, held this July. Eurostar Pioneers, ordinary British, French, Belgian, German and Spanish members of the public, got to meet famous sports stars.

Also on hand to explain their role in the coming Olympics festivities were Greg Nugent, LOCOG brand director, Philip Johnson, architect of the Olympic Stadium, and Emma Harris, Eurostar director of sales and marketing.

No flight of fancyEven faster than a speeding train, of course, is a plane. In 2008 Air France gifted Asian air routes with early use of its giant Airbus A380 craft to coincide with the Games in Beijing. This year the airliner celebrated the 75th anniversary of its Paris-Dakar route, the 50th anniversary of flights to Tahiti, and it also opened a new path to Lima in Peru. Likewise Air France stands to shuttle thousands of tourists and sports fans from Europe to the London Games next year.

Sadly, plans to fly Concorde once more over London skies to herald the opening of the Olympics, possibly in cahoots with British Airways, seem to have hit the buffers. Evidently the £50m cost of refurbishing an Air France Concorde held in Paris was deemed just too much.

Meanwhile in August Heathrow Airport was announced as the 43rd sponsor of and host to the Olympics and Paralympics. Up to 80 percent of athletes, officials, sponsors and passengers going to the Olympics may pass through the airport. Already the airport is preparing 1,000

volunteers to meet the athletes, and Heathrow staff have earmarked 14 August 2012 – one day after the closing ceremony – as probably their busiest ever.

Riding the wavesShips and ferries offer a more leisurely passage to England, and one active player likely to benefit from the Olympic wave is Brittany Ferries. The company, another Chamber member, is sponsoring the Poole-based GBR Match Race Girls sailing team who hope to represent Britain at Weymouth in 2012.

Brittany Ferries began in the 1970s when a group of Breton farmers organised to deliver their produce to British markets. Today passengers as well as freight sail onboard Brittany Ferries craft from Santander and Bilbao in Spain, and from Roscoff, St Malo, Caen and Cherbourg in France, to Portsmouth, Poole and Plymouth on the English south coast – handy for getting to London, or staying near Portsmouth for the sailing events.

Communicating and anticipating…Lastly travel also offers tremendous chances for marketing. Firms such as JCDecaux have acquired the right to brand key strategic stations and airports. This “wealth corridor” will offer a platform for firms to advertise their wares to a mobile, captive audience; and the latest poster and digital technology will provide the ideal delivery mechanism.

Yet the question remains: Can air, sea and land transport deliver fans to the Games? Naturally there are worries. In March, Lady Tanni Grey-Thompson feared that the current testing conditions for disabled commuters in and around London might worsen during the Games. And Val Shawcross, chair of the London Assembly transport committee, spoke of ‘extreme demand placed on a network already creaking at the seams’, not least for ‘Londoners who need to go about their everyday business too’.

But by and large the answer to the question must be (to paraphrase President Obama) “yes they can”. I LRJ

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Readiness is all – preparing for the Olympic challenge

The “London Prepares” series of test events over July and August gave sports fans a sneak preview

of the excitement to come next summer. With beach volleyball taking place at the Horse Guards Parade and basketball around the Olympic Park itself, organisers also had the chance to assess how venues might hold up under pressure of their first large crowds.

Planning, preparation and testing are essential to the success of the Games. This is as true for business as it is for organisers and athletes. So how prepared are they?

Polling the punters…Deloitte recently asked 300 large UK businesses about how they were preparing for the opportunities and challenges from London 2012. Some 95 percent of businesses have either started assessing or plan to assess the impact of the Games. Less encouraging was that 53 percent have yet to actually start this process.

Businesses are waking up to the need to prepare and be ready for the Games. When we asked the same question last year, 56 percent of companies said they had no intention of assessing the impact of the Games. Now that figure has fallen to just 5 percent.

Tailoring to differencesBusinesses yet to start their Games readiness assessments should do so immediately – initially by gaining senior level buy-in for a Games readiness programme. This should be quickly followed by the appointment of a representative group from across the organisation to assess the risks and opportunities. Every business is different and should recognise its unique circumstances in its assessment – with industry, geography and competition among the key influencing factors.

Our research suggests that businesses have a better understanding of the challenges they could face during the Games period. Now 37 percent of companies are worried about the risk of a security incident, compared with 5.5 percent last year. Meanwhile 26 percent are

Shakespeare surely had a point when he put those words in the mouth of Prince Hamlet! More

prosaically, the motto remains valid for businesses preparing for 2012, suggests Mark Naysmith,

director in the Deloitte business continuity and resilience team

concerned by a potential lack of resources such as hotels (compared with 7 percent last year). Another 18 percent fear disruption to their supply chain (8 percent last year) and just 3 percent of businesses expect no disruption at all, a significant decrease on the 39 percent of businesses who felt this way just 12 months ago.

Finding the staff…The issue causing greatest concern is the potential unavailability of staff. 43 percent of companies cite this as a major concern ahead of the Games, compared with 23 percent when asked last year. Transport disruption may cause absence of staff, and businesses should use the Games as an opportunity to review and implement alternate site practices, and consider flexible hours and home working where feasible. This would hugely benefit the long-term resilience of organisations, providing a legacy benefit from the Games, as well as helping reduce the strain on London’s transport system.

To accurately understand all the potential impact areas, businesses should really craft a set of planning assumptions around transport and staff availability, supply chain, resources, security and technology. Organisations should not wait until hard data is available as this may leave things too late.

Planning ahead, reaping the rewardsWith less than a year to go, it is encouraging to see improved business sentiment and awareness about the Games. However, this is tinged with a degree of caution in that most organisations have yet to fully understand the impact. London 2012 is an immovable deadline, and time is starting to run out. The sooner businesses implement their Games readiness assessment with sufficient vigour, the sooner positive changes can be made. This will ensure adequate preparation in advance so the exciting opportunities of this sporting and cultural spectacle can be fully enjoyed. I

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London 2012 – catalyst for a lower carbon future

The celebrations in July that marked one year until the start of London 2012 saw the excitement about

the coming Olympic and Paralympic Games reach a new high. But although the starting pistol is yet to be fired on what is set to be a fantastic event, those of us closely involved with the Games are already thinking about what happens long after the closing ceremony is over.

Thinking green… longer termThe Olympic Games and Paralympic Games are, first and foremost, about sport, but the power of the event to create a legacy in other areas should not be underestimated. At EDF, as a Sustainability Partner for London 2012, we also want people to think about how they could reduce the amount of energy that they use in their day-to-day lives.

In the UK, for example, our Team Green Britain campaign was started in 2009 to bring people together to reduce their carbon footprint before the Games begin. This community is now comprised of over one million members. We hope that the environmental

changes inspired by the Games will endure long after the last race has been run, and will contribute to a lasting legacy of sustainability for London 2012.

Harnessing the enthusiasm of youthOne of the best ways to ensure that the Games have a positive long term impact is by involving future generations. That is why it is so encouraging that the London Organising Committee (LOCOG) has put in place ‘Get Set’, the London 2012 education programme, which is all about involving children and young people in the excitement and inspiration of the Games.

EDF Energy’s programme for Greener Schools, The Pod, is part of the ‘Get Set’ programme, and it aims to use the Games to engage children in sustainability. ‘Get Set’ also uses London 2012 to help young people develop skills such as entrepreneurship and creativity.

New trees and bright lightsAnother fine example of building for the future is provided by the Mayor of London’s Re:Leaf programme, which is set to see 10,000 new trees planted in streets across London ahead of the Games. And at EDF we are working with City Hall, the City of London Corporation and our fellow 2012 partner, GE, on plans to install a state-of-the-art energy-efficient lighting system on Tower Bridge. As well as helping to cut carbon and reduce energy costs, the project will enhance this global icon’s architectural features at night. In that way the bridge will be transformed into a symbol of sustainability for the many visitors who will descend on the capital in 2012.

London 2012 is a great opportunity for London, and the UK as a whole, to show the world what we are capable of, not just in terms of hosting a great sporting event, but when it comes to doing our bit for the environment too. It is our hope that the Games will provide a real boost to making real our vision for a lower carbon future. I

Just as the Games will support a UK legacy that is about more than sport, so will its lasting

benefits extend beyond the boundaries of the Olympic Park – especially concerning sustainability,

explains Gareth Wynn, Group Director of the EDF 2012 Programme

Joshua Larkin and Libby Dunster, from Coleshill CE Infant School, enjoy a visit to the Olympic Park in recognition of their school’s achievements via the Pod, EDF Energy’s programme for greener schools. They were joined by paralympic hopeful Marc McCarroll, a member of the Tennis Foundation’s Wheelchair Tennis Performance Programme


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A little corner of France in London

One year ahead of the Games, how does the CNOSF prepare for the event?On July 27, the CNOSF celebrated one year to go before the London 2012 Olympics. With the Games fast approaching, our aim is to strengthen the support around the French Olympic Team and we also wanted to present the “Club France,” which will be the French House in London during the Olympic Games. This is in line with our ambition that sport should become a major stake in France’s future.

How does sponsorship work? Who is allowed to promote the Games?We have developed a national marketing programme, which to this day counts nine partners who can communicate about their business sector and promote the French Olympic Team on French soil. Moreover, through the TOP marketing programme developed by the IOC, international partners can also take the lead on actions on the French territory provided they have the CNOSF’s support.

What do you see as the primary benefits the French Olympic Committee expects to obtain from the London Games? The London Games will have an exceptional resonance in the media, putting the French Olympic athletes in the limelight. The Club France will be a wonderful opportunity for the French Olympic Committee to promote Olympic sports and their athletes and to enable as many people as possible to share an exceptional Olympic experience.

How important is it to France that the 2012 Games are so geographically close? For the first time, we will offer a gathering place for all those supporting the French Olympic team, including those who will not have managed to obtain tickets. The Club France will be a place of celebration and a

France has been carefully preparing its

presence at the London Games. Denis Masseglia,

the president of the CNOSF, explains how the

French businesses, athletes and public are

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CLUB AMBITION SPORT

Club Ambition Sport is an innovative programme initiated by the CNOSF – the French Olympic Committee – to gather companies which seek to put sports at the heart of France’s ambition.

One year ahead of the Olympics, the CNOSF offers a platform for companies, especially SMEs, and their employees to show their support for the French athletes at the London Olympic Games thus creating a real community behind the Olympic Team.

Members can promote their Club affiliation in their communication by using the logo created for that purpose. They will also be associated with other programmes initiated by the CNOSF, and, if they wish, their employees can benefit from exclusive information about the latest Olympic news. These regular updates will be sent on mobile phones or tablets. In addition, different events and networking functions will be organised throughout the year to promote the Club.

Club Ambition Sport will be chaired by Daniel Costantini, long-time coach of the medal winning French men’s handball team, an emblematic figure in French sport. It aims to continue well beyond the Olympics. The wide support and involvement of the economic world in sport will enable to continue to enrich the future development of sport in France. I

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place for meeting others, offering dedicated hospitality opportunities.

How important is the team’s success on the field to achieving a commercial success?Any triumph by the French team would certainly unify our partners and supporters. One of the French Olympic team’s assets is that it performs well in more than fifteen sports, which increases the chances of obtaining good results!

What are the primary purposes and functions of the Old Billingsgate site (Club France)?The Club France set up for the London Games will be something quite unprecedented. It takes the French presence in London to new dimensions! It aims to welcome the French Olympic Team and all of its supporters, the Olympic family, the media, private partners and the public. At the end of each day we will celebrate the latest Olympic medalists. We want Club France to be a place of exchange and sharing, gathering all the actors of the sports movement. Located at the heart of London, and with a capacity of 3,000 to 3,500 people, Club France will be open to the public from 9 am on.

Club France has been divided into several spaces: the ground floor will be dedicated to the public. Here, supporters will be able to follow the competition live on giant screens and fully immerse themselves in the Olympic spirit with interviews and exhibits or relax in one of the cafés. On the first floor, private and institutional partners will be able to customise private salons for their public relations. Media facilities will allow for full media coverage throughout the Games, with live interviews broadcast directly from the Club France. France Televisions, the official broadcaster for France, will have its own studio on the terrace of the Old Billingsgate. Finally, as a symbol of conviviality and French savoir-vivre, a brasserie will be open in the basement for those wanting a little bite before the evening celebration parties begin around the athletes. I 1The Olympic Programme

Club France at Old Billingsgate

French, the official Olympic Language?

It was explicitly written in the Charter creating the Olympic movement and it remains true today: French is the first language of the International Olympic Committee and as such, it must take precedence at all Olympic ceremonies

including when medals are being handed out. English is to be relegated to a second language for the duration of the Games, meaning that any statement in English “should be read after the French” .

The Right Honourable Mrs Michaëlle Jean, former governor of Canada and UNESCO special envoy for Haiti, has been appointed Grand Témoin de la Francophonie for the 2012 Olympics. Her mission is to safeguard the place of French as the official Olympic language. “70 countries of the Olympic Movement are French-speaking”, she says. But she explains that she does not see her role as merely setting up strict rules to promote or protect French as the Olympics language. “Francophonie is much more than that. We want to emphasise the encounter between civilizations, the capacity to live together and to work alongside one another”.

Francophonie and Olympism are above all about values. The International Olympic Committee is more and more involved with questions of development and poverty relief. The Rt. Hon. Michaëlle Jean recalls that the Vancouver Games happened just after the Haiti earthquake and Canada, and as a response the IOC and many others have gathered to help with reconstruction in Haiti, mainly through sport.

So being a Grand Témoin de la Francophonie is as much about preserving the position of French as the official Olympic language as it is to bring values back at the heart of the Olympic Celebration. “In order to do that, we need to involve all French people and Francophiles living in London”, says the Rt. Hon. Mrs Jean, who recently met with the LOCOG in London and created along with ambassadors and high commissioners a structure to mobilise the French-speaking community and Francophiles in London and all over the world. I

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A gold medal for painting? Bizarre as it sounds that is exactly what was awarded at past Olympic Games.

Baron Pierre de Coubertin established the principle in Paris in 1906, and six years later the Stockholm Games launched a ‘Pentathlon of the Muses’ which offered prizes across five artistic categories: architecture, music, literature, sculpture and painting.

Such competitions are a thing of the past, yet what remains is arguably far more valuable: the idea of a Cultural Olympiad to showcase the artistic, musical and creative talents of both the host nation and international guests. In London’s case, the Olympiad

– or the “festival or festivals” as Olympiad Board Chair Tony Hall prefers to call it – actually began four years ago, with concerts, art shows, exhibitions and educational ventures. And it should last well after the last running, jumping, swimming and throwing medals are awarded!

Bold visionAaron Cesar, director of the Delfina Foundation, feels that this bold vision probably helped London win the overall Games bid in the first place. Involved with the proposals in the run-up to the 2006 announcement, Cesar says:

“De Courbetin wanted the Olympics to be about three things: culture, youth and sport. And all three symbolise this city, a place of such creativity and diversity.”

Cesar and colleagues emphasised what is loved and admired about the British heritage, including Shakespeare. At the same time they wanted to tap in to the vibrant, radical aspects of the Games’ location, East London and Hackney on its edge. Tracey Emin

Artistic explosion to match sporting prowess

Art, culture and heritage helped win London the Olympics bid, so the Cultural Olympiad that

accompanies the Games is integral to their success – and to engendering fun and creativity well

beyond 2012, as Lawrence Joffe explains

is helping re-brand the Olympiad as the London 2012 Festival with exciting posters, and other cultural icons are also involved. Most pivotally, though, the Olympiad should “inspire creativity across all forms of culture”

– and, as Cesar stresses, it must showcase the amazing talents of younger, lesser known artists.

In tune with the Olympic spiritOlympiad events linked to local festivals include, back in 2008, Brentwood’s hosting of an East Meets West Essex-Jiangsu Cultural Exchange with Chinese artists. And a huge Open Weekend was held late this July. Already 14 million people have participated in Olympiad-related events.

The culmination will be a major arts festival with artist Damon Albarn, writer Toni Morrison and the Sydney Theatre Company, amongst others; a Peace One Day rock concert; and a dazzling curtain-raiser a week before the opening ceremony. Called a River of Music, it will feature musicians from each of the 205 participating nations, playing at stadiums dotted along the Thames shoreline.

Another strand is New Music 20X12 – twenty new works, each 12 minutes in duration, commissioned by PRS for Music Foundation together with LOCOG, the BBC and others. Talented teenagers are presently signing up to a singing project called Youth Music Voices, while the London 2012 Inspire programme will see the Olympic spirit take to the provinces.

Inspire, an Olympiad offshoot, hopes to bring art to all corners of Britain. One stream helps teens in the South West learn more about the music industry.

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Another is a schools project to create new operas and folksongs in the East of England. The London Symphony Orchestra is partnering with young East Londoners in On Track.

Breaking the Wall, a venture in art and music, led by deaf composer Lloyd Coleman, challenge misconceptions about disability by using the motifs of the ancient Greek who ran the first marathon. And Unlimited, sponsored to the tune of £1.9m, much from the National Lottery, promises to be Britain’s largest ever programme celebrating arts, culture and sport by disabled and deaf people.

Poetry for the massesIt is not only in the sports arena that records will be broken. Ordinary people from around the globe are currently nominating poets from each of the 205 nations, to perform next summer at Poetry Parnassus. This may well be the world’s largest ever festival of verse. The South Bank Centre provides the venue and core funding, alongside the Arts Council.

Organisers are seeking further sponsorship from individuals, trusts and endowments, so that, as SBC artistic director Jude Kelly says, Parnassus can truly

“celebrate language, diversity and a sense of global

The South Bank Centre provides the venue for next Summer’s Poetry Parnassus where 205 poets from each competing nation will take part in the world’s largest ever festival of verse

togetherness”. Major firms like BP have signed up as Olympiad sponsors, though £80m of the programme’s £100m budget comes from the public purse. While organisers feel that the new “festival” focus will better hone the event in the public mind; sceptics worry that heritage will fall victim to media hype.

Disseminating new skillsYet heritage is by no means forgotten. The Cultural Olympiad has spawned numerous entertaining educational events in the run-up to the Games, designed to build a talent pool for the future. Many initiatives, gathered under the rubric Stories of the World, stress the international dimension of the Games. Just this August, for instance London’s National Portrait Gallery offered 14-19 year olds free art classes during their summer break.

Outside London is Dress the World, which uses hands-on workshops and interactive technology to bring historical fashion to life at museums in Nottingham, Leicester and Northampton, and to teach visitors basic curatorial skills. Meanwhile the search is on to find 10,000 performers for the Olympics opening ceremony. No doubt as July 2012 approaches, there will be much to cheer and sing about… I LRJ

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CreateDebateExhibit

Claude Monet (French, 1840–1926)Spring in Giverny, 1890Oil on canvas, 64.8 x 81 cm. © Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, Williamstown, Massachusetts, USA, 1955.616

Exhibition organised by the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, Williamstown, Massachusetts, in association with the Royal Academy of Arts.

For more information contact:Stuart South, Corporate Membership Manager020 7300 5629 [email protected]

From Paris: A Taste for Impressionism Paintings from the Clark

7 July – 23 September 2012

Special 2012 Partnership Package

1 July – 31 December 2012

One free evening and one free morning hire of the Royal Academy to host an exclusive event with exhibition private view plus 200 complimentary exhibition tickets valid for the duration of the membership.

Partnership fee £10,000 plus VAT


Royal Academy of ArtsDegas and the Ballet: Picturing Movement

Sponsored by BNY Mellon 17 September – 11 December 2011 / in the Main Galleries / £14 (£13 concessions)||| In the autumn of 2011 the Royal Academy of Arts will stage a landmark exhibition focusing on Edgar Degas’s preoccupation with movement as an artist of the dance. Degas and the Ballet: Picturing Movement will trace the development of the artist’s ballet imagery throughout his career, from the documentary mode of the early 1870s to the sensuous expressiveness of his final years. The exhibition will be the first to present Degas’s progressive engagement with the figure in movement in the context of parallel advances in photography and early film; indeed, the artist was keenly aware of these technological developments and often directly involved with them. I

Edgar Degas, Dancers, c. 1899

exhibitions

�� - info - october / november 2011

What’s on?

This major exhibition is presented in collaboration with the Royal Shakespeare Company. It will revisit William Shakespeare’s stories and tell them anew to London in 2012. Maps, prints, drawings, paintings and tapestries will sit alongside arms and armour, books, coins, medals and much more. I

19 July – 25 November 2012 / admission £14

COURTAULD GALLERY

The Spanish Line: Drawings from Ribera to Picasso Supported by the International Music and Art Foundation and the Centro de Estudios Europa Hispánica

BRITISH MUSEUM

Shakespeare staging the world

10. Pablo Picasso Pigs, c.1906© The Courtauld Gallery, London

The exhibition presents highlights from The Courtauld Gallery’s collection of Spanish drawings, one of the most important in Britain. Comprising some 120 works, the collection ranges from the 16th to the 20th centuries and features examples by many of Spain’s greatest artists, including Ribera, Murillo, Goya and Picasso. I

13 October 2011 – 15 January 2012

DESIGN MUSEUM

Kenneth Grange – Makin Britain Modern

Kenneth Grange is Britain’s leading product designer. He is responsible for designing some of the most iconic and familiar products and appliances that shape our daily lives. Kodak cameras, the silhouette for the Intercity 125 train, Kenwood food mixers, Parker pens, and the re-design of the London black cab are just some of his well-known designs. I

20 July – 30 October

NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY

The First Actresses: Nell Gwyn to Sarah SiddonsThe First Actresses will explore the vibrant and sometimes controversial relationship between art, gender and the theatre in eighteenth-century England. Combining much-loved masterpieces with newly-discovered works, the exhibition will look at the ways in which actresses used portraiture to enhance their reputations, deflect scandal and increase their popularity and professional status. I

20 October 2011 - 8 January 2012 / Wolfson Gallery /Tickets £11/£10/£9

NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM

Veolia Environnement Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2011

Marvel at the best nature photographs on the planet in this celebrated annual wildlife photography exhibition opening in October. I

21 October 2011 - 12 March 2012

ROYAL OPERA HOUSE

Faust, Charles-François Gounod

||| David McVicar’s wonderfully indulgent interpretation brings to life what was once the most famous and most performed opera of all, in which Faust sells his soul to the demon Méphistophélès in exchange for youth, and then is tempted by the innocent beauty of Marguerite. Gounod’s opera is renowned for its many hit numbers. I

18 September - 10 October / Sung in French with English subtitles

Adshell Bench, 1972. Kenneth Grange

Mary Robinson as Perdita By John Hoppner. Chawton House Library, Hampshire


SAATCHI GALLERY

The shape of things to come: new sculpture

The Saatchi Gallery exhibits 20 leading and emerging international artists working in sculpture today. From granite monoliths to neon structures, buckled cars to stuffed horse hide, the exhibition demonstrates the diversity and dynamism of the medium. I

27th May - 16th October 2011/Admission Free

SERPENTINE GALLERY

Anri Sala

Anri Sala (born 1974, Albania) is a leading contemporary artist working primarily in film. For his exhibition at the Serpentine Gallery, Sala will present a series of echoing works in which sound relocates throughout the space. A succession of different cycles will draw the visitor through the Gallery on an ever-changing course. I

1 October - 20 November 2011

TATE BRITAIN

Barry Flanagan

Barry Flanagan, who died in 2009, was one of Britain’s most important and original artists. This exhibition re-evaluates Flanagan’s position as a key

What’s on?

figure in the development of British and international sculpture. It will be the first major exhibition of Flanagan’s work in London since 1983. I

27 September 2011 – 2 January 2012 / £11 (£9.50 concessions) / Free for Tate Members

THEATRE ROYAL HAYMARKET

The Tempest – Shakespeare

Trevor Nunn directs Ralph Fiennes in William Shakespeare’s The Tempest as the third production of his electrifying season at the Theatre Royal Haymarket. Almost certainly Shakespeare’s last play, The Tempest can lay claim to being the first ever work of magic realism. I

27 August - 29 October 2011

VICTORIA AND ALBERT MUSEUM

Postmodernism: Style and Subversion 1970-1990Supported by the Friends of the V&A

V&A’s major autumn exhibition will be the first in-depth survey of

art, design and architecture of the 1970s and 1980s, examining one of the most contentious phenomena in recent art and design history: Postmodernism. I24 September 2011 – 15 January 2012 / Rooms 38 and 39, and North Court / Admission charge will apply

WATERLOO STATION LONDON

The Railway Children

Don’t miss this unique production of E Nesbit’s classic story, The Railway Children as it pulls into London Waterloo Station this summer. The former Eurostar terminal is being transformed into an exclusive theatre space, with the audience seated on either sides of the real railway track. I19 June 2011 – 8 January 2012

Title Suspended 2008 - Moving sculpture. © Anri Sala 2011

aaing j gni aa 1965 Tate © estate of Barry Flanagan courtesy Plubronze Ltd.

Grace Jones maternity dress 1979© Jean-Paul Goude


||| The Institut Français has invited the most amazing British, Belgian, American and French comic books creators in London to mingle in novel ways in its first ever annual BD&Comics Passion Festival.

Over the course of three days, enthusiasts and beginners alike are invited to participate in lots of exciting events such as conversations/drawing happenings between Jean-Claude Mézières (Valérian and Laureline) and Dave Gibbons (Watchmen), Yves Sente and André Juillard about the making of Blake and Mortimer, etc.; talks (China Miéville on his favourite comic books creators, Anthea Bell on translating Asterix and many more); a masterclass by Oscar Zárate on making a four page comic, drawing sessions starring Bastien Vivès (The Taste of Chlorine) and Benoît Sokal (Canardo); a Montparnasse live drawing event with Catel & Bocquet as well as the UK premieres of Moebius’ stunning short film La Planète encore and of Largo Winch 2: The Burma Conspiracy…

Last, but not least, on Saturday 8 October you won’t miss the screening of erotic sci-fi cult film Barbarella, nor their invitation to a very kitsch Cosmic Party, where fancy dress is a must!

7 - 9 October 2011. If you want to book an event, go to: www.institut-francais.org.uk/bdandcomicspassion

FRANCEINLONDON: LONDON’S FAVOURITE FRENCH FILM 2011

||| Now an established annual event on the capital’s cultural scene, ‘London’s Favourite French Film’ this year celebrated its 8th consecutive year. With a huge increase in its on-line vote and a Mumm champagne reception, followed by the gala awards ceremony, the evening at the Institut Français was a great success.

Double the number of people voted on-line in 2011 compared to last year and 20 times more than when the event was first launched. Patricia Connell, CEO of FranceinLondon, the No 1 web-site for all things French in London, commented: ‘We are so pleased to see this event, which we inaugurated in 2004, continue to go from strength to strength. It is vital that we go on celebrating and promoting the contribution of our world-beating cinema industry to the cultural scene in London.’

Sponsored by many leading French and British companies, such as Eurostar, Renault, Caudalie and The Villa Book, and hosted by His Excellency the French Ambassador, Mr Bernard Emié, the awards ceremony saw this year’s prize awarded to Guillaume Canet’s latest film, ‘Little White Lies’ ( ‘Les Petits Mouchoirs’), distributed in the UK by Lionsgate. Georgia Kaufman, Director of Communications of the company, collected the

award. The runners were Gainsbourg by Joann Sfar, and Of Gods and Men by Xavier Beauvois.The evening also saw the screening of ‘Romantics Anonymous’ (‘ Les Emotifs Anonymes’ ), starring Isabelle

Carré and Benoît Poelvoorde. Having received critical and popular support in France, the film has now also been chosen to open the UK’s ‘French Film Festival’ and will be on general release in the UK, distributed by Picturehouse Entertainment, from 18th November.


School Blues

by Daniel Pennac, translated by Sarah

Ardizzone. MacLehose Press.

||| Daniel Pennac has never forgotten the day one of his teachers saved his life by assigning him the task of writing a novel. In School Blues, Pennac explores the many facets of schooling: how fear makes children

reject education; how children can be captivated by inventive thinking; how consumerism has altered attitudes to learning. Haunted by memories of his own turbulent time in the classroom, Pennac enacts dialogues with his teachers, his parents and his own students, and serves up much more than a bald analysis of how young people are consistently failed by a faltering system. School Blues is not only universally applicable, but it is unquestionably a work of literature in its own right, driven by subtlety, sensitivity and a passion for pedagogy, while embracing the realities of contemporary culture. I

book rev iews

The Indies Enterprise

by Erik Orsenna, translated by Anthea

Bell. Haus Publishing.

||| On 13 August, 1476, off the coast of Portugal, the ship commanded by Christopher Columbus was wrecked. Columbus was miraculously able to reach the coast where he found refuge with

his younger brother Bartolomeo, a map maker, in Lisbon. The Columbus brothers worked relentlessly for eight years to prepare the voyage Christopher dreamed of: the search for the passage to the Indies. Bartolomeo tells the story from the very outset; he is his brother’s accomplice and the main witness to the events leading to the Indies Enterprise. French Academician Erik Orsenna brings Christopher Columbus and his brother Bartolomeo to life in a novel that explores how a passion for discovery can tragically lead to the destruction of what has been discovered. I

These books, written in french and recently translated into english, were selected by the French Institute

Letters to Pauline

by Stendhal translated by Andrew

Brown. Hesperus Press.

||| Determined to take his deeply loved younger sister Pauline’s education in hand, Stendhal was obliged to continue her tuition in epistolary fashion on leaving Grenoble. In his letters

to her he instructs her in what she should read (Plutarch, Molière, and Shakespeare); what to study (philosophy, logic, mathematics, and music); whether or not to get married (and to what kind of man); and generally how to enliven the tedium of a French provincial town. At the same time, he encourages her to think for herself—a process that, inevitably, reveals what he thought when thinking for himself. I

A Pocket Philosophy Dictionary

by Voltaire, translated by John

Fletcher. Oxford University Press.

||| ‘What can you say to a man who tells you he prefers obeying God rather than men, and that as a result he’s certain he’ll go to heaven if he cuts your throat?’

Voltaire’s Pocket Philosophical Dictionary, first published in 1764, is a major work of the European Enlightenment. It is also a highly entertaining book: this is no ‘dictionary’ in the ordinary sense, nor does it treat ‘philosophy’ in the modern meaning of the term. It consists of a sequence of short essays or articles whose unifying thread is Voltaire’s critique of established religion: ridicule of established dogma, attacks on superstition, and pleas for toleration. I


w ine press

A new Guinness World Record has been set for the most valuable bottle of white wine ever sold. The

bottle of 1811 Château d’Yquem was sold by London fine and rare wine specialists, The Antique Wine Company, in London on 26 July 2011. It was bought by the wine connoisseur and private collector Mr. Christian

One man’s genius bottled in a wine collectionMichel-Jack Chasseuil comes from humble origins. But he has formed a collection of wines to

rival the greatest. Here we go on a tour of this remarkable man’s wines

Vanneque, for his new restaurant in Bali, Indonesia. He paid £75,000 ($117,000). The wine came from the collection of Michel-Jack Chasseuil.

A few days after this record sale, by chance I came upon a book called “100 Bouteilles Extraordinaires de la plus belle cave du Monde” by Michel-Jack Chasseuil. This described a unique wine collection held in a little village in the area of les Deux-Sèvres no more than 50 miles from my French family base. I decided to learn more about this extraordinary private cellar and share this discovery with you.

Chasseuil‘s cellar holds 35,000 bottles, 1000 Magnums and more than 100 Jeroboam and Imperial bottles from the greatest vineyards of the world. They date back to the Eigthteenth Century and include 110 vintage bottles of Chateau d’Yquem, one from 1811. Michael Broadbent, the world famous wine expert, says it simply is the most extraordinary wine collection he has even seen.

Michel-Jack Chasseuil, who turns 70 this year, comes from modest personal origins, but thanks to a hard working life at “Dassault Aviation” and a passion for collecting, he has managed to build up the equivalent of the library at Alexandria, in terms of collections of fine wines. It is, indeed, a monument dedicated to his life’s passion for the most rare and greatest wines ever made. This collection includes the Richebourg 1978 and the Chateau Latour 1899.

The First growth from Pauillac dates from the 17th century when it was already one of the most expensive wines from Bordeaux. In 1787, the future American president Thomas Jefferson put it in the same class as Margaux, Lafite and Haut-Brion. Chateau Latour is Fine wine, Château d’Yquem

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Cheese of the month by La Cave à Fromage: Ossau Iraty

||| The Pyrenees may not be France’s highest mountains yet they certainly display magical qualities. A real sense of enchantment reigns over the area when you combine its human, cultural, geographical and agricultural aspects. With valleys running north/south, and often difficult to cross from east to west, divisions are not so much between Spain and France but more between Bearn and Basque.

Uniting these two regions are the mountains where sheep graze freely from spring through to autumn. One hard cheese named after the twin valleys of Ossau and Iraty has developed into a regional culinary icon. Pale when young to caramel-like when aged, Ossau Iraty boasts unique flavours, thanks in large part to the innate qualities of its rich milk. The taste almost explodes in the palate, releasing all the aromas found in the mountains: flowers, hay, honey and happiness. I

Wine to accompany Ossau Iraty by Wine Story||| Nestled between the Pays Basque, Bearn and Gers regions, the Ossau Iraty area boasts a strong local culture and is a veritable paradise for food and wine lovers. After a few slices of black Basque pig and before tasting the famous Basque cake, what could be better than trying a platter of mature Ossau Iraty? To match this cheese, which is justifiably proud of its origins, I have to choose local wines. A white Irouléguy from the Basque hills, a dry Jurançon from the Pau region or, for the red wine lover, a full bodied Madiran from the superb Clos Baste, made with rustic Tannat grapes. I

London’s best cheesemonger Time Out

Delicious and unique CHEESES

to impress your guests for any event

www.la-cave.co.uk 08451088222

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Hard cheese, Ossau Iraty

well known for its ageing potential quality and the 1899 Chateau Latour retains a lot of freshness for its age.

In this fantastic cellar we can see also a vintage 1845 from the oldest winery of the World: “Commanderia de Chypre”. In 1191 Richard Lion Heart gave Cyprus to the Knights Templar, then, they planted this vineyard and sold its production abroad to the King’s table. It’s a kind of ancestor of the Madera and Marsala. The vineyard survived the Turkish invasion and the Phylloxera but the vintages from today don’t have the same quality without the Templar touch.

From thousands of rare and extraordinary wines, my last pick to finish our journey is a Cognac Napoleon Grande Fine Champagne Rerserve d’Austerlitz 1805. This came from Napoleon’s own cellar in the Chateau de Fontainebleau and was bottled to celebrate his victory against the Austrian Emperor and the Tsar of Russia. The name, Cognac Napoleon, became later a legal denomination for which the youngest spirit must be six years’ old minimum.

Michel-Jack Chasseuil wants to create a foundation to preserve his cellar and he is currently looking for a place in Saint Emilion where he can store it.

If one day you buy a collector wine, try to do like Michel-Jack Chasseuil, buy a minimum of two bottles, one for you to taste and one to keep for future generations. Like every piece of art, wine is not only one man’s privilege it’s a legacy for the human race. I

Thibault Lavergne is the managing director of Wine Story Ltd

Tannat grapes


focus

ESCAPE AN D D I N E I N STYLE WITH R E LA IS & CHÂTEAU X I N TH E U N ITE D K I NG DOM AN D I R E LAN D

Participating hotels:Airds Hotel & Restaurant, Amberley Castle, The Bath Priory, Buckland Manor, Chewton Glen, Cliff House Hotel, The Connaught, Farlam Hall, Gidleigh Park, Gilpin Hotel & Lake House, Glenapp Castle, Gravetye Manor, Hambleton Hall, Inverlochy Castle, Kinloch House, Lime Wood, Longueville Manor, Lower Slaughter Manor, Lucknam Park, Mallory Court, Le Manoir aux Quat’ Saisons, Marlfield House, The Royal Crescent Hotel, Sharrow Bay, Sheen Falls Lodge, Summer Lodge Country House Hotel & Spa, The Vineyard at Stockcross, The Waterside Inn, Whatley Manor, Ynyshir Hall.

*VAT may not already be included in some hotels. Dinner without drinks. This offer is valid all year for any holidays taken before December 30th, 2011 included. Reservations must be made at least 72 hours prior to arrival date and are subject to availability. Changes may be done without prior notice. Rate based on two people sharing a double room. Accommodation in a double classic or superior room, a dinner for 2 people and a sumptuous breakfast for 2 the following morning. Euros will apply in hotels in Ireland. For reservations please call 00 800 2000 00 02**** Toll free number

www. re la ischateaux .com

Book a Charming British or Irish Escape in one of our country houses or city hotels and experience great British or Irish food at it’s best prepared by some of the most renowned chefs. From just £350* per couple…

817_RC_British_Escape_Advert.indd 1 08/07/2011 16:52


The English poet John Keats called Autumn the ‘season

of mellow fruitfulness’. For the Chamber, it is the season of dining! Our first is the Dîner de la Rentrée, our second, the Gala Dinner, and our third, the Annual Financial Lunch. The details of each of these events you will read below. This is an intense period of dining, and Chamber members may ask why and how they can participate.

Let us deal with the ‘why’ question first. There are four parts to the answer. The first comes down to their self interest, namely, they will know that dinners present an unparalleled opportunity for networking with old and new contacts. This in turn leads to business and to personal development. So that is a very hard and tangible reason. Second, they are showing their loyalty to the Chamber. The Chamber represents their more general interests to the wider community, in terms of lobbying and influence. It also serves as a forum for acquiring knowledge and sharing experience. Another good reason.

The third reason for participating is to enjoy the wisdom presented by some very distinguished guest speakers, namely Nicolas Petrovic (CEO of Eurostar) at the Dîner de la Rentrée on October 5, Paul Deighton (CEO of LOCOG) at the Gala Dinner on November 8 and Angela Knight (of the British Bankers Association)

News @ the Chamberat the Annual Financial Lunch on November 18. Few organisations can offer such an important and indeed topical line-up to their members. We hope that members will appreciate it.

The fourth reason, and one perhaps we too often miss, is simply pleasure and indulgence. These may be terms neglected or in short supply in these austere times. But members who have attended dinners in the past will know that Chamber events are graced with the highest calibre of cuisine and service. We know that our guests have and deserve the best standards and we aim to meet those standards. These dinners take place in very graceful surroundings, of top London hotels, so there is aesthetic as well as well as culinary pleasures in store.

Sponsorship programmesNow for the ‘how’! The most obvious answer is to attend, and to bring colleagues, partners and even friends who might be interested in our network and community. An additional source of benefit is to participate in our sponsorship programmes. These give companies considerable visibility at events where members and guests are most receptive.

While dinners are the key feature of this season’s programme, we have a host of other events demonstrating the high level of our speakers and topics. I


La Poste is one of the UK’s leading providers of digital print, fulfilment, industrial document optimisation and postal services. Our global reach means that we offer distribution services to France, UK mainland and international destinations.

Core to our offer are solutions for business mail, direct marketing campaigns, publications and commercial goods. La Poste is also at the forefront of Hybrid Mail technology, a solution for same day document production and despatch, developed on a secure IT platform.

With operation centres located in Bedford, Bristol and Slough, our service offer is extensive resulting in flexible distribution solutions for the delivery of messages and products to global markets. La Poste gives you ‘Direct access to the World’.

2 NEW PATRON MEMBERS:

The Office of the Agent General of South Australia endeavours to: Encourage investment in South Australia; Facilitate access to projects with a combined value of over 60 billion Euros, which have either been approved or are pending approval in South Australia. Provide support for the export of specific South Australian products and services to Europe, particularly wine; Encourage skilled and business migration to South Australia; Promote South Australian higher education study opportunities; Assist the South Australian Tourism Commission in attracting tourists and working holidaymakers to South Australia.

GOVERNMENT OF SOUTH AUSTRALIA REPRESENTED By John Rees, Business Development Director, Investment | www.southaustralia.biz

Business model - London subsidiary:Bygmalion is a group specialised in strategic consulting, image and communication. We work with large international companies and organisations who wish to enlarge their network, develop their business or improve their reputation in France.

Business services in Paris:Our Paris office offers a wide range of services including strategic consulting, press relations, publishing, online marketing and events.

GROUPE ByGMALION REPRESENTED By Guy Alves, CEO & Founder | www.bygmalion.fr

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Business Solutions Disneyland® Paris | www.disneylandparis-business.com

Business Solutions-Disneyland Paris is a team dedicated to your professional events: conventions, seminars, private parties, team-buildings…

Easy access: on-site Eurostar station and 35 min from ParisMeeting spaces, accommodation and leisure activities within walking distance2 convention centres, 95 meeting rooms, 3 event venues, 2 theme parks and 8,200 guest roomsDisney quality of service

Represented by Marion Rudloff, Manager, Business Development UK

••••

5 NEW CORPORATE MEMBERS:

Do More 4 Life | www.domore4life.com

DoMore4Life is a social enterprise, which helps companies meet their CSR objectives, which brings with it a host of additional benefits. In particular, our programmes focus strongly on employees’ engagement and we track every £ donated so you can see the difference your philanthropy has made. Represented by Eve de Beaufort, Co-Founder

LA POSTEREPRESENTED By Frédéric Petton, Managing Director | www.laposte.co.uk


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16 NEW ACTIVE MEMBERS:

Anacrouse Independent media strategy and buying company, advertising in France Represented by Riccardo Di Mauro, Chairman www.anacrouse.com

Anubis International funeral assistance Represented by Dominic Verhnes, CEO www.anubisgroup.org

Capemoor Investments Ltd Serviced Apartments, Travel Represented by Don Williams, Managing Director www.capemoor.com

Champagne Fresne Ducret Beverages Represented by Daniella Fresne, VP Sales and marketing www.champagne-fresne-ducret.com

Cigalon/Baranis Restaurant and Bar Represented by yann Osouf, General Manager www.cigalon.co.uk www.baranis.co.uk

Dawson Cornwell Law firm (Family law) Represented by Lucy Marks, Partner www.dawsoncornwell.com

EISTI (Ecole Internationale des Sciences du Traitement de l’Information) Graduate Engineering School Represented by Marie-Josée Lamerre, Head of International Relations www.eisti.fr

Estelle & Vincent Catering Represented by Estelle Durand, Partner www.estelleandvincent.com

Flybe Airline Represented by Paul Willoughby, Regional Sales Manager www.flybe.com

Gregory Rowcliffe Milners Solicitors Legal Represented by Olivia Cooper, Solicitor www.grm.co.uk

Hay Group Consulting Represented by Berengere Peter, Senior Consultant www.haygroup.co.uk

Jumeirah Carlton Tower Hotel Hotel Industry Represented by Audrey Kosnar, MICE Sales Executive www.jumeirah.com

Piggyback Publishing Represented by Louie Beatty, Managing Director www.piggyback.com

Tax Assist Accountants The Accountancy and Tax Service for Small Business Represented by Franck Sidon, Principal www.taxassist.co.uk/chiswick

The International Law Center Legal Represented by Loïc Raboteau, Head of Egypt, French, Morocco www.internationalpropertylaw.com

Wallix French leader in IT security software solutions Represented by Nick Lewis, UK country manager www.wallix.com

First | www.firstmagazine.com

FIRST is a multi-disciplinary international affairs organisation. Founded in 1984, it aims to enhance communication between leaders in industry, finance and government worldwide, and to promote dialogue at the strategic level. This is achieved through three principal channels: publishing, events and awards. Winner of the Queen’s Award for Enterprise 2010. Represented by Cristina Bruce, VP, European affairs

Millennium Gloucester Hotel | www.millenniumhotels.co.uk

With 821 combined guest rooms and suites, the 4-star deluxe Gloucester and Bailey’s Hotels are conveniently located in the heart of South Kensington. Across from the Gloucester Road Station, leisure and corporate guests have three underground lines with direct access to London attractions, historical monuments, parks, restaurants and shopping in less that 30 minutes.Represented by Andrew Tan, General Manager

Rapporta Limited | www.rapporta.com

Rapporta Limited specialises in personal impact, management and leadership skills development through bespoke one-to-one executive coaching and interactive training sessions. Rapporta Limited is based in London and provides coaching and training for businesses in the UK and continental Europe. Rapporta’s team have proven their ability to help people demonstrate rapid, visible results in their leadership communication and presence.Represented by Mary-Louise Angoujard, Founder and Managing Director


what’s ne w

||| The Franco British Trade Directory (FBTD) contains contact details and business descriptions of the members of the French Chamber. It lists more than 600 companies - from blue chip companies to SMEs and entrepreneurs - and useful contacts and addresses in France and the UK.

It is an extremely useful tool for members to interact with one another but also to reach customers, find clients, business partners and access the broader Franco-British network.

The FBTD is exclusively distributed to our members’ representatives, free of charge, as a membership benefit.

Discover your fellow membersMore than 1,500 contacts listedSearch by sector, by company name or by main representativeAll useful addresses and contacts in France and in the UK

••••

The new Directory (2011-2012) will be out soon!

New Member to Member offers newsletter

||| As a member of the French Chamber, enjoy PREMIUM offers and DISCOUNTED rates all year long!

Indeed, we are proud to announce that a recent newsletter has been created this summer in order to give members the opportunity to showcase products and/or services within the UK, all year long and FREE of CHARGE. All members from the Franco-British business community will receive premium offers featuring: free financial advice, coaching sessions, legal and tax consultations, special hotel rates, discounts in retail shops and much more! This newsletter will be published every 3 months and also posted online in the section M2M Offers. I

Last chance to advertise in the Directory – one year visibility!

With a circulation of 3,000 copies and a high profile targeted distribution, the directory is the perfect marketing tool for your business.

SPEciAl OFFEr:Inside back cover £1200 instead of £1800Full page £990 instead of £1200Half page £480 instead of £600 Contact David Lislet on +44 (0) 207 092 6651

•••

What’s new at the Chamber?There is no standing in the way of progress at the Chamber! Discover in this section our latest

and newest initiatives and projects

If you wish to submit an offer for the next Member to Member newsletter please contact:

Aude Reungoat on +44 207 092 6636


what’s ne w

||| Greening the economy means promoting practices and industries that use energy efficiently. It also means developing renewable, sustainable sources of energy. In a green economy, renewable energy is easy to access and technology can be powered by these new sources. Setting up entire systems based on new energy sources requires significant time and outlay. But once this infrastructure is in place, a green economy will save money, a strong plus point in a time of austerity. This focus on ‘The Green Economy’ will look at the state of development of energy sources, at the cost and status of energy research and the likely outcomes for industries, for householders and for the wider environment. This focus will look at the future for the green economy as well as today’s pragmatic solutions to global warming and the surfeit of Carbon Dioxide. I

INFO Magazine - The November/December issue will focus on ‘Green Economy’

Patron Members’ Newsletter

A BRAND NEW ‘NEWS’ SECTION ON OUR WEBSITE

Get your advertising space now and choose the section that best suits your marketing needs.Contact David Lislet on +44 (0) 20 7092 6651

VISIT WWW.CCFGB.CO.UK AND ACCESS

The Agence France Press (AFP) business news in both French and English (for members only*)

An Olympics section with all the latest news and useful links

A members’ news and new members section. Please do not not hesitate to send your company’s latest news to Hannah Medioni at [email protected]

A press section

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*Create your member login to access the AFP news. Only visible when logged in

Olympic_News.indd 1 25/08/2011 18:06:52

||| In October 2011, we will launch a new and exclusive Patron Members’ newsletter. It aims to be a personalised, direct and targeted communication between the Chamber and its Patron Members. It will feature Patron only events and highlight the best of the Chamber’s news and activities with sections such as a calendar, a focus on the Clubs & Forums and a welcome section for our new Patron Members. The look and feel of this newsletter will be unique, smart and dynamic by including photos, videos and social media. Finally, we hope that this newsletter will be an engaging platform that enhances a sense of community and efficient communication. I

If you wish to contribute to INFO, please contact Anne-Cécile Larribau at [email protected] or 0207 092 6650


Curtains up for a midsummer operatic treat

||| It was a night at the opera, but a night with a difference. On Tuesday, 5 July, some fifty Chamber patrons were treated to the premiere of Laurent Pelly’s production of Cendrillon (Cinderella) at the Royal Opera House. As hors d’oeuvres there was a special reception in the Covent Garden building’s Conservatory, an elegant room normally reserved for ROH patrons. So the event really marked a double debut.

French opera with London originIntroduced by CCFGB Deputy Chair Peter Alfandary, the Administrative Director of the Royal Opera, Cormac Simms, described how Cendrillon was first performed in Paris in 1899. Yet the notion germinated in London when the composer Jules Massenet and librettist Henri Cain were attending the London premiere of another Massenet opera, El Cid.

Apparently singing has its hazards, revealed Simms: one previous Cinderella in Seville broke her foot and had to continue her season in a wheelchair! For his part, Julian Metherell, Chairman of the ROH Advisory Committee, promised much more French opera at the ROH, and urged listeners to keep their eyes and ears open for the 2012 season.

Love stories and missing shoesReception drinks and canapes were provided by Chamber member, Pernod Ricard UK, the event’s main sponsor. The Perrier-Jouët champagne, the same as was used at the Royal wedding at Monaco three days earlier, was “outstanding” said a participant. ‘There was a really dreamlike quality to the event’, she added, ‘ceremonial yet informal, bubbly and effervescent, a bit like the opera itself’.

Jean-Manuel Spriet, former CEO of Pernod Ricard UK from 2005 until this summer when he moved to South Korea, then described how the coming 200th anniversary of the parent firm marked ‘a long love story with the British’. Then Benoît Dilly, the UK

Country Manager of BNP Paribas Leasing Solutions, the supporting sponsor, noted his group’s strong commitment to the arts.

Privileged accessThe guests also took a backstage tour that opera glasses never reach. Led by Jane Storie, ROH Head of Corporate Sponsorship, and Catherine Faulkner, Event Manager at Pernod Ricard, they learned about the building’s façade, foyer and auditorium, dating from 1858, and its extensive £200m reconstruction in the 1990s that raised the structure from one to three storeys. Guests also heard how Queen Victoria used to watch opera from her royal box, while her ladies-in-waiting kept their backs turned and could only observe performances on a mirror.

The ROH currently employs 900 people, and its 2.5 acre site contains a 2,400-seater auditorium, a naturally sunlit ballet rehearsal studio, a stage that mechanically adapts to different décor and sets, and electronic librettos which appear on small video screens built into selected seats. The venue is quite likely the most modern theatre facility in Europe today.

Chamber guests returned after the show to enjoy desserts and Martel Cognac. By then it was nearly eleven, so time for carriages – and happily not pumpkins I LRJ

5th July: Main sponsor and supporting sponsor

recent e vents

Outstanding Perrier-Jouët champagne lent a spritely sparkle to a most unusual and enjoyable Chamber

event this summer. Naturally there was wonderful networking, yet more to sing about too

A tour of the magnificent Royal Opera House


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Enjoying bubbly beyond the bustle

||| On July 12, the French Chamber of Commerce in Great Britain held its Summer Champagne Reception at the recently refurbished St Ermin’s Hotel near St James’s Park.

More than 60 guests enjoyed French Bubble’s unique Champagne tasting experience on the beautiful terrace of the Hotel, nestled in a quiet courtyard set back from the bustling streets of Westminster.

Peter Alfandary, deputy president of the Chamber, briefly traced the extraordinary story of St Ermin’s Hotel, from its building upon the site of a 15th century chapel dedicated to St Ermin, to its recent £30m extensive refurbishment which put it at the forefront of London’s luxury hotel industry. He thanked Douglas McHugh, the Hotel’s General Manager, and Rebecca Weber, the Director of Local Corporate & Government Sales, for making the event possible. He then paid a tribute to the excellence of French Bubbles Champagnes, and thanked the founders of French Bubbles, Maud Fierobe and Stefano Frigerio, who for the second time sponsored the Chamber’s summer Champagne reception.

Douglas McHugh, the General Manager of the St

12th July: Held at

Ermin’s Hotel warmly welcomed guests and explained how carefully the “Old Lady” had been refurbished and how its historically important architecture sat alongside dramatic textural interiors and the latest in cutting edge facilities. The hotel’s 331 individually designed rooms and 25 meeting places all reflect this careful balance between tradition and modernity.

As the two styles of pink Champagne chosen to celebrate the summer were served - the Champagne Pertois Moriset Rosé Grand Cru and the Champagne Furdyna Rosé - Maud and Stefano shared their passion about Champagne and gave information about the evening’s rare and delicious selection.

The evening ended with a lucky draw which included a complimentary stay for two people inclusive of English breakfast for a one night at St Ermin’s Hotel and a complimentary 3 course dinner with a bottle of wine for two people in the new Caxton Grill.

This event was the occasion for the Chamber’s members to get together whilst sipping the best of champagnes and enjoying the most exquisite of places. An evening to remember… I A-CL

St Ermin’s Hotel, a lovingly restored haven, overlooking St James Park yet in the heart of

Westminster, provided the perfect setting for the Chamber’s Summer Champagne Reception

From L to R, Stefano Frigerio, Rebecca Weber, Peter Alfandary, Maud Fierobe and Douglas McHugh


More than a game of two halves: A great day out for Patrons at the Emirates Stadium

||| For the sun to shine two days in a row during the British summer must surely constitute something of a miracle. If so, the heavens were smiling on an enjoyable two-day Chamber outing to the Emirates Stadium on Saturday 30 and Sunday 31 July, when two groups of twelve Chamber patrons enjoyed some fabulous football, courtesy of Arsenal Football Club, the sponsor.

The occasion was the Emirates Cup 2011 and the flavour was truly cosmopolitan, both on the playing field and off. On Saturday the New York Red Bulls (USA) played Paris Saint-Germain (France) in the first match, followed by Arsenal versus Boca Juniors (Argentina). Then on Sunday Boca Juniors teed off against Paris Saint-Germain, followed by Arsenal versus the Bulls.

A similar cosmopolitan flavour prevailed in the viewing enclosure, where French and British guests of Arsenal and the Chamber mingled easily together. As one attendee put it, ‘the atmosphere was really good and relaxed and the weather was amazing. People networked, yet in a nice informal way. Some had never met before, but they soon bonded through the common language of football...’

At times the mood grew almost euphoric, and the appearance of the former Arsenal player, the popular Frenchman Thierry Henry, drew cheers from Arsenal supporters. ‘We joined in as the whole stadium performed the Mexican wave, four times in succession

– I had never seen anything like that before!’ divulged our source.

What really struck the visitors was the excellent way one could feel part of the action, with perfect views of the stadium and field. At the same time the enclosure resembled a discreet little flat, complete with private restrooms and a cooking station. Needless to say, there was wine, beer and soft drinks aplenty.

When the matches were over and the New York Red Bulls had celebrated their victory, Arsenal guests went on privileged tours of the impressive infrastructure that is the Emirates Stadium. This is not the first time the Chamber has co-operated on such a venture – similar outings took place last year. And given how successful it was, by all accounts it won’t be the last! I LRJ

30 & 31 July: Kindly hosted by

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Patrons cheered on some excellent football at the Emirates Ground, where they watched among

others Thierry Henry go through his paces. It was a remarkable event, enjoyed by all

Patrons in the private box

The Emirates Stadium


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5th october 2011

Dîner de la rentrée19.30 - 23.00£100 + VAT per person; £950 + VAT for a table of 10£1140 + VAT for a table of 12 AT THE ST PANCRAS RENAISSANCE HOTEL

About NicolAs petrovicNicolas Petrovic graduated from the Ecole Superieure de Commerce de Paris (ESCP) in 1992 and obtained his MBA at Insead in 2003. He started his career in 1992 as Business Development Manager at the ‘Compagnie Generale des Eaux’, based in Taiwan. Returning to France in 1993, he joined SNCF where he held various positions in business units and general management. His final role at SNCF was Chief of Staff for the Directeur General Delegue Passagers, where he remained until 2002. Joining Eurostar in 2003 as Director of Customer Services, he became COO in 2006 and was nominated CEO of Eurostar in April 2010.

About eurostArEurostar is the high-speed rail service directly linking the UK to France and Belgium via the Channel Tunnel. It started operating in 1994, providing city centre to city centre services. Following the move, from Waterloo to St Pancras, Eurostar’s fastest journey times fell with London-Paris now taking 2 hours 15 minutes, London-Brussels, 1 hour 51 minutes and London-Lille just 1 hour 20 minutes.

Eurostar runs up to 18 services to Paris and nine to Brussels daily. In addition, up to nine trains stop at Lille in northern France, and up to three services stop at Calais Frethun en route.

intercultural trophy for business excellence

Traditionally the annual Intercultural Trophy for Business Excellence, designed by Cartier, is awarded on this occasion. This year is the 14th edition. The winner will be elected by other fellow members as having made particular efforts to develop stronger ties between the two countries or to promote Franco-British cross-cultural relations.

Past winners include Bouygues (2010), Cinémoi (2009), Eurostar (2008), Saint-Gobain (2007), EDF Energy (2006), Renault UK (2005) and Arsenal Football Club (2004).

Guest speAker: NicolAs petrovic, chief executive officer of eurostAr

10th november 2011

Ambassador’s brief18.00 - 19.30Main representatives of Patron and Corporate members onlyAT THE RESIdENCE Of THE fRENCH AMbASSAdOR

His Excellency Mr Bernard Emié, French Ambassador to the United Kingdom, will address Patron and Corporate Chamber Members on the themes

berNArd emié freNch AmbAssAdor to the ukBernard Emié

For more details, please contact Karim Mijal on [email protected] or on 020 7092 6638

“Outcome of the G20 Cannes Summit; Agenda of the forthcoming Anglo-French Summit.”The speech will be followed by a Q&A session.


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Guest speAker: ArNAud bAmberGer, executive chAirmAN of cArtier uk

2nd november 2011

ceo breakfast 08.00 – 10.00 £40 + VAT AT THE CONNAUGHT HOTEL SPONSOREd by RELAIS & CHâTEAUx

About ArNAud bAmberGerSince his arrival at the historic Old Bond Street site in London in 1992 as Managing Director of Cartier UK Ltd, Arnaud Bamberger has become a well-known and respected figure on the social and sporting scene.

Born shortly after the end of World War II into a branch of the famous Lumiere family – inventor of cinema – Arnaud was brought up in France. He studied both Philosophy and Economics in Paris. It was in the mid-Seventies, whilst working as Sales Promotion Director for Rothmans, that his cosmopolitan flair – he is tri-lingual – was noticed by Alain Dominique Perrin, then the President of Cartier.

Arnaud spent several years as Cartier’s Export Director, based in Paris, but his command of the English language prompted a move in the early 1980s to New York. Here he took up the role of Vice President, Retail and opened up an impressive 15 stores during his time stateside. In 1987, he was tempted back to his homeland to head up the retail operations worldwide.

After five years in Paris, Arnaud was yet again tempted by a challenge overseas, so the position of Managing Director UK at the very nadir of the recession proved too alluring. Under his successful

management this important market for Cartier has more than tripled its turnover and sales continue to thrive.

In recognition of his work for Cartier, Arnaud was awarded the highly prestigious Chevalier de l’Ordre National de la Légion d’Honneur at the French Ambassador’s residence on 21st April 2009.

In September 2010, Cartier International announced Arnaud Bamberger’s appointment into the new position of Cartier UK Executive Chairman.

About cArtierIn 1847, Louis-Francois Cartier founded one of the world’s most prestigious jewellers, which has been established in London since 1902. Christened by King Edward VII “Jeweller of Kings and King of Jewellers”, Cartier continues to create unique and stylish pieces.

An exquisite selection of fine jewellery, a wide range of watches, clocks, pens, lighters, leather goods, fragrance and accessories comprise the collection by Cartier, which is available in the Bond Street Showroom and Cartier Boutiques. Throughout the British Isles there is a selective network of quality jewellers and specialists stocking Cartier watches, accessories and fragrances.

relAis & châteAux Relais & Châteaux is an exclusive collection of 500 of the finest hotels and gourmet restaurants in 60 countries. Established in France in 1954, the Association’s mission is to spread its unique art de vivre across the globe by selecting outstanding properties with a truly unique character. Furthermore, Relais & Châteaux is also a family of hoteliers and Grands Chefs from all over the world who share a passion for and a personal commitment to ensuring their guests are privy to moments of exceptional harmony. To choose Relais & Châteaux is to experience an unforgettable celebration of the senses.

From the vineyards in Napa valley to the beaches in Bali, from the olive trees in Provence to the lodges in South Africa, Relais & Châteaux offers a chance to explore the Route du Bonheur and discover a special place in a variety of destinations. The Relais & Châteaux signature reflects this ambition: “ALL AROUND THE WORLD, UNIQUE IN THE WORLD.“


forthcoming e vents

MAIN SPONSORS: dELOITTE, Edf ENERGy ANd HSbCSUPPORTING SPONSOR: ACCOR

8th november 2011

Annual Gala Dinner08.00 – 10.00 19.30 - 23.00£169 + VAT per person; £1500 + VAT for a table of 10; £1800 + VAT for a table of 12AT THE LANdMARK HOTEL

About the GAlA diNNer The French Chamber of Commerce is pleased to announce that Paul Deighton, CEO of LOCOG, will be the guest of honour and speaker at its most prestigious event of the year: the Annual Gala Dinner. This event, which gathers around 400 decision makers from the Franco-British business community, will take place at the sumptuous Landmark hotel on 8 November.

It is a black tie event which features a Champagne reception, a gastronomic dinner, live entertainment and a tombola with amazing prizes.

Last year Gala was a resounding success thanks to the participation of Boris Johnson, Mayor of London.

About pAul deiGhtoNThis year, we will learn more about the preparation of the Olympics Games thanks to Paul Deighton, who leads the LOCOG team to deliver all operational plans according to the terms of the Host City Contract signed with the

International Olympic Committee (IOC).Paul is in charge of the day-to-day operations of LOCOG,

from raising the £2 billion budget from the private sector to working closely with the Olympic Delivery Authority to ensure the Olympic Park venues and other new infrastructure is delivered on time and meets requirements for a successful Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The Landmark Hotel will be the venue for this year’s Gala dinner


In a context of economic turmoil and financial restlessness, many leading firms have come

together, under the Chamber’s auspices, to launch the Quarterly Economic Update Forum.

Chaired by Philippe Chalon, the forum aims at analysing the state of the UK economy and at

bringing some answers. The Chamber is proud of this new forum and looks forward to its

forthcoming second edition

forums

||| The QEU’s chairman, Philippe Chalon, is the director of external affairs at International SOS and the managing director of the Cercle d’outre-Manche, the French London-based think tank co-founded by Arnaud Vaissié, the Chamber’s President. Philippe was also named as the rapporteur for a report on creation and development of French SMEs published by the Institut Montaigne last June. He says he expects the Chamber to serve as a ‘readers digest’ to the macroeconomy. ‘We will be addressed by top British economists who really understand the current climate. They summarise the issues and they will be sufficiently detached to give members an authoritative overview of the current situation.’ The value of that analysis cannot be overstated. ‘Access to accurate information is vital for a business to succeed,’ he says. ‘In times of economic turmoil, things can change very quickly. We have seen it over the last two months.’

Mr Chalon expects future speakers to the QEU to be of a similar calibre to the speaker that launched it, Ian McCafferty, the chief economic adviser to the CBI and a leading spokesman on the UK economy. Mr McCafferty anticipated ‘the rocky and sluggish conditions’ that currently prevail. He anticipates the next meeting to be held at the end of the October.

The QEU will concentrate on providing short and medium perspectives on the UK economy. Mr Chalon cannot help but reflect much current thinking that

New Forum: Quarterly Economic Update serves members’ hunger for information about today’s uncertain economy

the outlook is indeed fairly negative, both for this year and next. He cites the figures produced by the IMF which anticipates UK GDP growth for 2011 of 1.75%, and the following year is unlikely to be much better. He observes that the UK has the largest budget deficit in peacetime, and ‘tackling debt is now number one priority.’ He speaks rather pessimistically about countries’ ability to tackle unemployment, given that a country needs to grow at least 2% to achieve this.

The subject of a double dip recession is returning to the agenda,

warns Mr Chalon, although this has yet to be established. He expects this to be a key subject of discussion at future meetings of the QEU.

However Philippe says some comfort can be derived from the recent report that the UK is meeting the targets it has set itself for the reduction of its budget deficit. This has been the result of higher taxes and the bank levy imposed by the UK Treasury on the banks. Philippe says this should increase confidence. ‘At the end of the day countries’ success and ability to pull through is all about confidence.’ IMr Chalon began his career as an adviser to a French member

of the European Parliament before serving as Commercial

attaché to the French Embassy in Iceland. He joined

International SOS six years ago. Today he works closely with

the Institut Montaigne and the French Chamber of Commerce.

Philippe is a graduate from Cambridge university and from

the Institut d’Etudes Politiques in Paris.

Philippe Chalon


forums

TIP ONE: It’s vital that you recruit and promote carefully and put people in jobs they are capable of doing. Provide training, support and monitoring and if you appoint someone to manage people make sure they have people management skills, not just technical expertise.TIP TWO: Everyone needs some challenge and pressure in their work to motivate and bring out their best, but when this goes too far stress illness and legal claims can result. Match the people to jobs that they can do and give them access to employee assistance help lines to help with personal and work-related issues.TIP THREE: Creating the right culture is important for every business. Company culture is what employees’ experience every day when they come into work. It’s the environment in which they work, the way

“things get done around here”. It does not come from a book, a speech, or an intranet article, but from the way senior managers interact, every day, with their reporting managers and their customers down the line to the most junior employee and the “least important” customer. Does everyone behave in the right way when the going gets tough- that’s the acid test?TIP FOUR: There are lots of comments and courses about how to create Employee Engagement, but consistent attention by managers and leaders to the apparently small things, arrangement of offices, willingness to listen to employees on a day to day basis, regular face to face team meetings to keep people informed, are more important in building engagement than major one-off initiatives.TIP FIVE: Consult regularly with your workforce about changes, for example significant downsizing or transfers of businesses. This is a legal requirement but worth doing in any case. Explaining and listening to representatives helps you prepare to communicate with your whole workforce. Listening to representatives may save you from some embarrassing mistakes!TIP SIx: It’s important that people are clear where they stand, so make your Employee handbook simple, clear and comprehensive. Let everyone know that they are expected to read and follow it. Tell them who they should speak to if they are unsure about something.

Most CEOs of most businesses would agree that mobilising the power of their people is the key

to success, so we asked members of our HR forum for their ideas and wisdom for good people

management and this is what they told us

Twelve tips on best HR practice from the Chamber’s Human Resource Forum

You don’t want someone speaking negatively about the business on a social networking site and then saying no one told them they could get fired for doing so!TIP SEVEN: Successful businesses have a culture of achievement (rather than talking about achievement) so the best advice I would give is that if, when you see the planned agenda for a meeting you cannot work out what the outputs are intended to be, either get this changed or cancel the meeting. TIP EIGHT: Real Diversity is strength for any organisation and we need to take practical steps to improve. For example if you want your senior leaders to understand the barriers that women have to overcome then create opportunities for those senior leaders to listen to their talented women junior managers. TIP NINE: Remember that honest, constructive and timely feedback on performance is a gift, vital to the development of your people. Deliver feedback face to face or by phone, rather than email and remember only evidence makes it real. Most people really want to do a good job at work but sometimes people find themselves in a role that does not suit their skill set or personality, if you can find a different role that works better for the individual, a problem case can become a success story.TIP TEN: Every employee has some talent and potential. Organisations need to develop that, but many people do not want to become CEO or reach some powerful position. They just want to do a good job day-in /day-out and these people must also be supported and nurtured.TIP 11: In these difficult times when pay rises may be impossible, never miss a chance to thank your employees who have done good work. If things do not work out and you need to end an employment relationship, act with dignity speed and take professional advice. Sometimes it’s not going to work out for a particular employee and if you have to dismiss someone, make sure, you follow a fair procedure.TIP 12: Remember it’s all about relationships: people often don’t remember what you did; they don’t remember what you’ve said; they remember how you made them feel. I

�� - info - october / november 2011

forthcoming e vents

By 2025, the value of Japan’s total imports of automotive components, from markets as diverse as Vietnam and Poland, is forecast to overtake its total car exports globally.*

As businesses increasingly operate within supply chains that span multiple countries it’s critical to have a wider perspective of how a business operates not just now, but in the future.

At HSBC we make it our business to know your business, intimately and thoroughly. Our Trade and Supply Chain teams are on the ground in the major and emerging trading economies, helping your business to take advantage of opportunities as they emerge, wherever they emerge.

For more information visit www.hsbc.com/tradeconnections

*Source: Delta Economics 2011

In the future, it will take many imports to make an export.

Issued by HSBC Bank plc. AC22830

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We would love the opportunity to discuss what we could do for you, please call Lars Clausen on +44 (0) 20 8541 0800 or email [email protected]

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AF_info magazine_PRESS.pdf 11/8/11 11:33:55

Scene is set for London Olympics Triumph

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Transcript of Scene is set for London Olympics Triumph