The students of KEDGE Business School's international business programme took part in the French Touch Tour in Marseille, Bordeaux and Paris this spring: a major event in their student life to discover the French know-how of international experts and leading companies.
The keys to grasp all international business challenges
Ranked best master in its category by EdUniversal in 2023, KEDGE's Master of Science in International Business offers various learning modules and educational projects in an interactive and operational approach. Students are first exposed to the fundamentals of management in the first year, then have a choice among several courses of study to narrow their focus before the second year, which addresses in-depth corporate finance, geopolitics, law, marketing and import-export issues. As with the other MSc modules, the "French Touch Tour", now in its 12th edition, brings students into a real-life scenario, allowing them to analyse international trade strategies through the various cultural and geopolitical factors involved in specific environments. This short seminar takes place in the last semester of the programme, followed by the "export market survey", a marketing analysis carried out and presented by the students in front of a panel of professionals.
12th French Touch Tour Agenda
In and around Marseille
- BROUSSE VERGEZ: Visit and conference in an independent, internationally-oriented family food trade group, producing ingredients for the food industry.
- EUROMEDITERRANÉE: a public planning institution carrying out an operation of national interest for urban renewal in Marseille, including all the challenges of a sustainable city: economic development, employment, housing, environmental quality, etc.
- CMA/CGM: Patrice Bergamini, vice president of public affairs, governmental contracts & business development at CMA/CGM, gave a conference to present the leading group in the field of international transport.
- LA SAVONNERIE DU MIDI: Visit of the La Corvette group's organisation, a renowned and historic family business that produces and markets traditional Marseille Soap.
- MARSEILLE CRUISE CLUB: This major player in maritime tourism is committed to fostering the eco-energy transition of the industry and developing economic benefits for the region. Their activities were presented by their business development officer Thomas Corona.
- MOTEURS BAUDOUIN: Visit and conference of a Cassis-based company specialised in the design and manufacture of engines mainly for the maritime sector.
In and around Paris
- INVIVO: Rachel Kolbe, head of sustainability and Olivier Clyti, strategic director, led students on a tour to one of Europe's leading agricultural groups promoting the transition of food to a resilient agrosystem. The company brings together 185 member cooperatives organised into four strategic business areas - International Grain Trade; Agriculture; Agri-food; Garden Centre and Food Distribution.
- LENÔTRE: With Sébastien Abdoul and Sélim Khatmi, business developpers, students discovered the kitchens of the Ecole des Arts Culinaires Lenôtre, which has been training the best chefs and pastry chefs in France for over 50 years. They discussed the school and its various programmes before visiting the laboratories.
- LA SEINE MUSICALE: Visit of the new facilities of the famous concert hall with Thierry Lefebvre, operations manager. Unveiled in 2017, la Seine Musicale is a unique cultural venue in Europe for music, and hosts a variety of events (artistic, political, festive, commercial...) every year.
In and around Bordeaux
- FAIRMONT ACCOR'S LUXURY HOTELS: Conference on the topic: "the international development of a hotel group". Fairmont is a leader in the global hotel industry and owns an exclusive selection of luxury hotels and resorts worldwide.
- CCEF: Presentation by the President of the association. This is a network of export specialists located throughout the world. To achieve this certification, MSc students attend international conferences given by specialists throughout the year and then take a final exam covering all the sessions.
- BUSINESS FRANCE NOUVELLE AQUITAINE: Conference by Gérald Petit, inter-regional director of Business France Nouvelle Aquitaine: "Role of the public authorities in supporting the export of French SMEs/ VIE scheme". This organisation supports companies in their export and international set-up projects.
- TOUTON: Touton is a global and historic player in the trading of tropical agricultural commodities. The company gave a general presentation before introducing the impact of sustainability and ESG issues and its communication challenges, employment opportunities in the group, and lastly the testimonial of a former Kedger.
- OCTOPIA: Visit of a subsidiary of CDISCOUNT that helps companies unlock the power of e-commerce by providing a turnkey marketplace, SaaS and e-commerce solutions.
- CHATEAU LUCHEY-HALDE: Visit of the urban vineyard that produces some of France's finest premium wines, followed by a wine tasting
- DARWIN: Discovering a local French Tech eco-system with a CSR dimension. Darwin unique space combines sports facilities, a bar, a restaurant, a coworking space and a business incubator on nearly 6,000 m² of infrastructure in the heart of Bordeaux.
