Discover the testimony of Clément PIQUET, a graduate ofINSEEC Grande Ecole Paris (class of 2013/2014), who looks back on his professional career.
Clément PIQUET
Graduate Master INSEEC Paris 2013/2014
“I joined INSEEC Paris for a Master’s degree in International Management/International Business, which was transformed into a double Master’s degree via a year of academic exchange at the prestigious Renmin University of China.
At the beginning of 2012, I flew to China for a three-month internship in Ningbo with the mission of developing the sales of a French wine branch. After this internship, my taste for Chinese culture and entrepreneurial spirit became overflowing.
In December 2012, I created a trading company in Hong Kong with a student loan, the birth of FRENCH DELIGHT LTD. This company is dedicated to importing, distributing and promoting traditional French wines from independent winemakers. After active prospecting, a dozen French winegrowers have agreed to work hand in hand with this young structure which has now become the spearhead of a flourishing business.
Following several commercial successes in trading, FRENCH DELIGHT LTD. invested in mainland China to create a subsidiary company of the WFOE type, a company with 100% foreign capital allowing to obtain its own wine import license without any local intermediary. In April 2015, FRENCH DELIGHT LTD. gave birth to NEMETON. The company is based in a beautiful coastal city in the North-East of China, 1 hour flight from Seoul.
This step marks the beginning of a new phase of development with the integration of Grands Crus Classés of Bordeaux and Burgundy into the portfolio. It is time for me to seize the opportunity offered to me by this vast and fascinating market by learning Mandarin.
The learning process is simple but requires a lot of willpower: contemplate your environment and learn every word that can be used in your daily life and in a professional setting. By the end of 2016 after many personal commitments I was finally fluent in Mandarin. I realized quite quickly that 90% of prospects could never become customers without learning the language, which allows a real bridge between cultures.
Some key references for NEMETON: a partnership with the 5-star hotel chain HYATT, several wines referenced in a Michelin starred restaurant in Shanghai (Mr & Ms Bund by Paul Pairet) and above all distribution channels established in 29 cities spread over 8 provinces operating via wholesalers and individuals. It was an opportunity to meet some very nice people, such as Charles Treutenaere who is the general manager of Domaine de Long Dai Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite).
As a new step in both personal and professional development, NEMETON became the official wine supplier of the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards in China from 2015 until 2018, the last edition in mainland China.
The Gourmands Awards reward each year the best books on cooking and wine. They were founded in 1995 by Edouard Cointreau.
My entrepreneurial journey blossomed following a fortuitous and wonderful meeting with Edouard Cointreau, patriarch of the Cointreau family, above all exceptional in human terms and a source of many inspirations.
It was an opportunity for me to expand my address book and to meet personalities such as the Chef of the Elysée Palace Guillaume Gomez, Jean-François Girardin, President of the National Society of the Best Workers of France, or Chef Xu Long who cooks for the Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing with more than 100 official banquets to his credit.
I couldn’t name everyone here but I discovered a Gourmand family, wine and gastronomy enthusiasts, journalists, officials, editors who for some have become friends.
Mastering the whole value chain of my industry, it seemed appropriate to create a third company in 2018 in Paris: DRAGONSHARK and its subsidiary DRAGONSHARK WINE & SPIRITS.
This company focuses solely on the distribution of Grands Crus Classés of Bordeaux, Burgundy and the most prestigious wines of Côtes du Rhône, Loire and Champagne.
In 2019, I officially become a Gourmand World Cookbook Awards Partner with a key mission to integrate new international partners. The next event will take place from June 3 to 6, 2021 at the Tuileries in Paris, where we expect more than 170 countries, 400 chefs, more than 40,000 visitors for 10,000m2 of stands and 200 interactive events.
As a wine lover, I decided in 2019 to extend my oenological skills by passing the WSET 2 diploma. The world of wine is just infinitely exciting… We are at the end of 2020 and this gloomy year with its implacable sanitary difficulties is soon over.
It is important for me to end this summary presentation by presenting you a new entrepreneurial step which, in my eyes, is becoming the most important step: my first foot in the vineyard as a winemaker!
At the beginning of 2021, I officially became co-owner of a Saint-Emilion Grand Cru wine estate!
A great anecdote to remember behind this story is that this Saint-Émilion Grand Cru vineyard belongs to one of the first winemakers to trust me in December 2012.
Thank you to all those who have confidence in the youth and in the human being!
Profitith some free time in confinement, I launched the Instagram page NEMETON_WINES. I am inviting you to discover and follow the Intagram page NEMETON_ Wines , where you will find many of my tastings of prestigious wines as well as my incredible encounters abroad!
Dear members of the INSEEC network, do not hesitate to contact me to discuss.“
Updated 24 February 2022