Every day brings its own press release for Pernod-Ricard and Paris Saint-Germain. On Monday, the capital club proudly announced that it had signed a partnership with the group specializing in alcoholic beverages. An agreement that did not, however, concern the Ricard brand, but that matters little to Marseille supporters who immediately launched a call for a boycott on social networks. A revolt that pushed the company to backtrack and announce in a hurry this Thursday that it was giving up on the global partnership with PSG.
” Treason “, ” we don’t forgive “. Some comments summarizing the trend that has been flooding social networks on the OM side for three days. Enough to cause a certain panic up to the top of the Pernod-Ricard management. Obviously fearing that this would quickly impact the group’s finances, a radical decision was taken and a press release published on Thursday. Chairman and CEO of Pernod-Ricard, Alexandre Ricard explained his choice: ” I made this decision for the group and in consultation with those who make it successful, including our employees in France, our customers and our shareholders, first and foremost my family. »
History reminder
For the CEO, the awareness of the brand’s identity and its roots in the Marseille region were like a wake-up call. For over 90 years, Ricard’s history has been intertwined with Marseille, where he was born, grew up and inspired. And this bond is stronger than anything. So today I am making a decision that comes from the heart. “A heart that had clearly been supplanted by the wallet in the thinking of Pernod-Ricard’s leaders. But the Marseillais were able to remind them of certain fundamentals.
If Alexandre Ricard said to himself ” I am sure that the people who worked on this project will understand (his) choice “, the bitterness among those most concerned could still be persistent. For the future, the CEO wanted to say a final word to reassure everyone: ” Pernod-Ricard will proudly continue to claim its origins and the sincerity of the links that unite our brands with their communities. » Confessed fault…
