Funny enough, I nearly hated marketing. If someone had told me back in school that I'd end up managing acquisition budgets for a living, I'd have laughed.

So would my marketing lecturer, to be fair.

My introduction to the subject was, honestly, a missed connection. The theory of the early 2010s — supermarket shelf space, the 4Ps, all of it — left me completely cold.

I couldn't find any meaning in optimising market share for fizzy drinks or washing powder through layers of abstract frameworks. I wanted something real.

To understand how a business actually works, to see the immediate impact of a decision, and to avoid theories that don't survive contact with the real world. So my real education happened elsewhere. Far from any classroom. Through two formative experiences that still shape the way I work today.

‍The school of intensity: Beijing, 2012.

‍At 19, I was thrown headfirst into the chaos of Beijing. A semester abroad in a country that is, frankly, overwhelming. The culture shock was immediate — the smell of coal, the constant noise, the sheer density of people. In Chinese universities, the world map puts China at the centre. That detail stayed with me. How you see reality always depends on where you're standing. On the rooftop of a skyscraper, surrounded by neon lights, I learnt my first lesson as a strategist: adapt or disappear. In a digital landscape that never stops shifting, that resilience is still my greatest asset.

‍The school of service: London, 2014.

‍Not the City. Covent Garden, as a waiter. That's where I got my most valuable lesson: what genuine service actually means. The mantra was simple — exceed expectations. A customer wants a beer that's not on the menu? I'd walk across the street, buy it from the pub next door, and bring it back. The woman on table 34 has a birthday? I'd run out and get flowers. I understood then that the product is never enough on its own. What keeps people coming back is attention, perceived value, and care for the details.

‍Finding performance.

‍Back in France, I cut my teeth in agencies — Z&KO, Peak Ace, NOIISE, Watt. I learned the craft, managed serious budgets, and sharpened my technical skills alongside some of the best in the business. But travel kept pulling me back. The convergence became obvious: take that technical expertise — Google Ads, tracking, data — and put it entirely at the service of the only industry that genuinely excites me. Monsieur Travel Marketing was born. Not as yet another generalist agency, but as a partner who actually speaks your language.

‍The places that shaped my thinking.I'm not going to reel off my passport stamps. What I want to share are the moments that shaped how I see this industry — and life in general. Because to sell a destination, you have to have felt it.

‍New York (the immersion): My first long-haul flight. The A380. Coming up from the subway and being hit by the sheer scale of Manhattan. That day I understood that travel isn't a journey — it's an energy. That's exactly the feeling your ads need to capture.

‍China (the adventure): 28 hours on a train to Guilin, sitting on the floor between carriages with no seat. Proof that comfort is entirely optional when the experience is unforgettable.

‍Mongolia (the silence): Sleeping in a yurt facing frozen plains. The absolute feeling of being at the edge of the world. A few days later, crossing the Gobi desert on a camel.

‍Zanzibar (the responsibility): My honeymoon. I saw the beauty of the beaches, but more than that, I saw the reality of local life. It reminded me that tourism is a powerful industry — one that has a duty to build a better future for the people doing the welcoming. I simply won't work with clients who don't respect their local partners.

‍The caravan (the emotion): Childhood holidays with my grandparents, driving across France. The memories that stay with you for a lifetime. Proof, too, that the most powerful moments are often the simplest ones.

‍A few facts (useless, therefore essential)

- Liverpool FC: unconditional supporter. I almost never miss a match. You'll Never Walk Alone.
- Le Mans: Every year, I'm trackside for the 24 Hours. A passion for engineering and endurance.
- Aviation: I had the chance to fly a Cessna at 13, and more recently, to sit in the cockpit of an A320 with a view over Etna. The finest office in the world.
- Vendée Globe: I've sailed on one of those legendary boats. The best possible school in discipline and resilience.

Now you know everything. Or nearly.