Thierry Marx won in the second round with 71.66% of the vote, the organization said in a press release. He won against restaurateur Stéphane Manigold, known for his publicized victory against the insurer Axa, which refused to compensate restaurateurs for periods of confinement.
Known to the general public for his role as a severe but benevolent juror in the cooking show “Top Chef”, concerned for twenty years about the social and environmental impact of his activities, Thierry Marx was “very applauded, at the announcement” of this clear victory, specifies the Umih in a press release.
“He wishes to be part of a spirit of unity and efficiency at the service of the members” of the organization “and, more broadly, of the entire profession”, according to this text.
Thierry Marx will give a press conference on Friday morning alongside Éric Abihssira – already president of the Federation of hotels, restaurants and tourism (FHRT) of Nice Côte d’Azur -, who takes the vice-presidency of the employers’ organization with 35,000 members.
“I have built a craftsman’s program in three points, no more, to move towards a professional union which is more a force of proposal than of opposition, in particular on the social and environmental impact, the attractiveness and the training of personnel”, Thierry Marx, elected for a four-year term, told AFP on Tuesday.
An industry which represents 7% of GDP and employs 1.3 million people is “in duty to improve the treatment of its employees”, with better mutual health insurance in particular, he estimated.
“We congratulate him on his election and we are now expecting him on the social aspect which remains pending, in particular on cuts, overtime, mutual insurance, the social system,” trade unionist Stéphanie Dayan told AFP. national secretary of CFDT Services.
– Challenges and emergencies on the menu –
For his part, Jean-Virgile Crance, president of the National Group of Hotel Chains (GNC), welcomed the “true vision” of MM. Marx and Abihssira “for our professional organizations which must come together to form a common house” of cafes, hotels, restaurants.
Thierry Marx takes the reins of the Umih at a time when the challenges are multiple: to attract young people through better working conditions in a sector neglected since the pandemic, to help professionals to adopt more sustainable practices, more sober in terms of energy , improve the offer by the Rugby World Cup in 2023 and the Olympic Games in 2024…
Not to mention emergencies: repaying state-guaranteed loans (PGE) taken out during the health crisis, dealing with soaring inflation and that of energy costs, in particular.
This will be one more commitment for Thierry Marx, who already employs 20% of people in integration, strives to reduce the carbon impact of his plates, advocates the label of “eating well” Bleu-Blanc-Coeur and transmits his knowledge in his schools “Cuisine mode d’emploi(s)”.
This former soldier, black belt in karate with a soft voice, who does not forget his childhood in the popular district of Ménilmontant in the east of Paris, learned the trade of pastry chef with the Compagnons du Devoir, before training in internationally renowned restaurants such as Ledoyen, Taillevent or Robuchon.
A great traveller, a fine connoisseur of the Japanese art of living and its gastronomy, Thierry Marx offers cuisine with avant-garde flavors at “Sur Mesure”, two stars in the Michelin Guide. He was one of the leaders in molecular cuisine and took over the kitchens of the Eiffel Tower brasserie in June.
At the helm of Umih, he succeeds hotelier Roland Héguy, who remained – like his vice-president Hervé Becam – for 12 years at the head of the organization, the main employers’ union in the sector, ahead of the GNI which represents the independents of the hotel and catering industry.
The latter, addressing his “sincere congratulations” to Thierry Marx through the voice of its president Didier Chenet, “invited him to resume discussions aimed at the creation of an organization common to [their] respective organizations. That’s all together that we will be able to weigh even more in order to carry our proposals and the colors of the French hotel and catering industry”.
