Members’ Rendezvous: a 50th edition packed with information and meetings

On Wednesday 18 September at the Yacht Club de Monaco, the Monaco Economic Board organised its 50th Members' Rendezvous in the presence of a host of VIPs. Created in 2009, the networking cocktail has become a key event in the Principality's economic calendar over the years.

More than 400 key figures and business leaders turned out for the 50th MEB Members' Rendezvous, a record number that once again underlined the success and therefore the usefulness of this event.

A successful appetiser
Ahead of the cocktail reception, member companies that had expressed a wish to do so and had managed to register quickly were given the privilege of taking part in the BtoB session, organised in the form of one-to-one meetings with contacts chosen from among the participants in the cocktail reception that followed. 27 tables dedicated to this exercise enabled 81 companies to engage in direct and effective dialogue, with over one hundred meetings taking place, not forgetting the spontaneous exchanges that took place between two meetings - in short, pure networking that got straight to the point.

A first of its kind in 2009
After a quick refit by the teams at the Yacht Club de Monaco, the Ballroom dedicated to the meetings was transformed into a superb gala room to make way for the cocktail reception. After a welcome from Executive General Manager Guillaume Rose, the President of MEB paid tribute to the people involved in the birth of this event. First and foremost was Franck Biancheri, President of the Chamber of Economic Development in 2009 (which was to become the Monaco Economic Board in 2015). Michel Dotta recalled that he had suggested the idea to his then President, an idea that the latter had implemented with the success we all know and "which is now part of the MEB's DNA". He then brought on stage the members of staff who had already been present at the time and who, through their involvement, had also played a large part in this success.

Pierre-André Chiappori: "I'm very optimistic about the future".
Pierre-André Chiappori, Government Councillor and Minister for Finance and the Economy, was a regular attendee of the Members’ Rendezvous, even though he had only recently taken up his post. He took the floor to remind the audience of the Principality's situation with regard to the various warnings issued by international bodies such as the FATF and Moneyval: "We know what reforms need to be made, and we have the luxury of being in a good macroeconomic situation to implement them, with negative debt thanks to the Reserve Fund (.... To tell you the truth, I'm very optimistic about the future, because at the end of the day, the wealth of an economy is its ability to create value, and that value is created by you, the entrepreneurs."

AMNOR, a new tool for the Principality's entrepreneurs
The Rendezvous was also an opportunity to highlight the new Association Monégasque de Normalisation (AMNOR) through the voice of its President, Jean-Franck Bussotti. 

As Monaco's representative within the ISO world standards organisation, the association will be able to carry the same weight as any other country thanks to the principle of one country = one vote, which will enable companies in the Principality to have an influence at international level on any decisions taken with regard to ISO standards.

Fight Aids Cup, a new edition also aimed at companies
Finally, it was the turn of Louis Ducruet, nephew of the Sovereign and President of the 'Barbagiuans' team, made up of former ASM FC stars, to take the floor. Every year, a charity match against the team of artists from the Monte-Carlo Circus Festival is organised in aid of the Fight Aids Monaco association. For the next edition in January, the event will be enhanced by a BtoB sequence open to the Principality's entrepreneurs and the event's sponsors, a meeting that looks promising.

And always an exceptional place to meet
At the end of these presentations, the many decision-makers present had plenty of time to cross-reference their customers and make new connections, sometimes with the help of the MEB team on hand to help them make the right connections. It was an exceptional opportunity to exchange ideas in an equally exceptional setting. 

It's set to be a packed programme!
At the same time, on the screens in the room, the programme of events dedicated to members over the coming weeks was presented: economic mission to Warsaw from 39 September to 2 October, CEMA's Africa Day Forum, of which the MEB is a partner, on 11 October, an economic conference with Ludovic Subran (in partnership with Monaco Asset Management and the JCE) on 14 October followed by a conference on "natural capital" on 27 November (with the Prince Albert II Foundation, BNP Paribas and the Centre Scientifique de Monaco), delegations from Sweden and Mexico, not forgetting the Trophées du Club Eco - Groupe Nice-Matin on 25 November. 

Photo credits: MEB / Landry Basile