Granddaughter of Paul Ricard, founder of the brand, daughter of the former boss Patrick Ricard, and cousin of the current CEO Alexandre Ricard, Lorraine Ricard also deplored the partnership between the Pernod Ricard group, historically linked to the city of Marseille, and Paris Saint-Germain.
The Pernod Ricard controversy is taking on a family dimension. While the spirits group, historically linked to the city of Marseille, has provoked the anger of OM supporters and residents of the Phocaean city by announcing a partnership with PSG, Lorraine Ricard has also publicly denounced the company’s strategy.
Granddaughter of Paul Ricard, creator of pastis and the eponymous brand, daughter of Patrick Ricard, head of the Pernod Ricard group until his sudden death in 2012, and cousin of Alexandre Ricard, current CEO, the artist published a message on Tuesday on the social network Linkedin, in which she expressed her incomprehension.
“In 2012, the OM supporters’ banner, brandished the day after the death of my father, Patrick Ricard, had deeply touched us,” she recalls, with photos to support her claim. “Marseille never forgets its children. However, today, the company seems to have forgotten this tribute and its origins by signing this partnership with PSG. When business betrays its roots, it damages its history and takes risks with its future.”
Benoit Payan will ask Alexandre Ricard for explanations
As early as Monday, and the publication of the press release announcing the merger between Pernod Ricard and Paris Saint-Germain, many Marseille Internet users, mainly OM fans, expressed their discontent, some even calling for a boycott of the group’s brands.
Interviewed by BFM Marseille this Wednesday, the city’s mayor, Benoit Payan, also made his little tackle. “I wasn’t happy to see that, we didn’t really understand. I even think that at Ricard, not everyone understood what was happening,” grumbles the elected official, who will soon be speaking with the CEO. “I’m going to ask him how and why we came to support PSG. Should we see it as the fact that now the people of Marseille are invading Paris and taking control of PSG, which would be the positive side, or are there other intentions? I’ll ask him the question. You know, the Ricard family, its founder, are people intrinsically linked to this territory. I’ll ask them again the question of the link with this territory. Because, to use a play on words, the people of Marseille are laughing yellow.”
