Jean-Yves REMY, President of the Labellemontagne Group, has established himself as a key player in mountain tourism. With a rich career marked by strategic vision and a deep commitment to the development of his family business, he has successfully overcome the challenges inherent in managing ski resorts, particularly in the Vosges, where he started out. His leadership, rooted in family and entrepreneurial values, has enabled Labellemontagne to prosper while diversifying its activities in order to adapt to a constantly changing environment.
In this interview, Jean-Yves Remy shares his personal and professional journey, his passions and his greatest motivations. He also looks back on his main satisfactions and the challenges he has faced, and shares his thoughts on the future of the company. From the transformation of Labellemontagne to the preparation of a smooth handover to the next generation, he candidly discusses the group’s strategic developments and his vision for the future of the mountains.
Discover the story of this passionate man, for whom the mountains are not just a place of work, but a place to live and take on challenges.
Jean-Yves REMY, can you tell us about yourself and your professional career?
Jean-Yves Remy: My name is Jean-Yves Remy, and I am the President of the Labellemontagne group. My career began with management studies in Paris, after which I joined the banking sector, in a bank specialising in tourism financing, called Crédit Hôtelier at the time. From the outset, my goal was clear: to become a business leader and take over the family business, while working in the mountains. I told my father that I wanted to take my time to learn the ropes, but that when the opportunity arose, I would be ready to return to the family business.
That opportunity came when we acquired a prestigious hotel in the Vosges. My cousin, who was already involved in the business, took charge of this hotel, while I took over the management of the Hôtel des Vallées. Although I had no formal training in hotel management, having been born and raised in a hotel, it was a formative experience. By managing the hotel, I learned to interact directly with customers and deal with operational constraints. Mistakes are paid for in cash, and this forges a keen sense of responsibility.
Gradually, I took on more responsibilities within the company, particularly during the winter of 1989-1990, which was marked by a lack of snow. This required crisis financial management, an area where my banking skills proved useful. In 1995, I took over as CEO of the company. The transition went smoothly, with no generational conflict with my father, who gradually stepped back to let me manage the technical and strategic aspects of the group. We modernised the Hôtel des Vallées and developed the La Bresse resort.
The trauma of that snowless winter prompted me to think about how to secure the family business. With most of our activity concentrated in the Vosges and highly dependent on weather conditions, it became imperative to diversify our operations geographically in order to spread the climate risk. We therefore decided to expand our business to the Alps, both in the north and south, to ensure greater stability in the face of climatic variations.
This strategy began in 1996 with the takeover of the Saint-François-Longchamp resort. Then, in the early 2000s, demand from local authorities for partners in resort management accelerated our development. Since then, the company has not posted a deficit, except in the winter of 2023-2024. Nevertheless, thanks to the diversity of our activities, particularly in the Alps, the company has been able to maintain a certain stability, with last winter being a good one overall for the group’s resorts.
Today, Labellemontagne has consolidated its core business in the ski sector and moved its head office from La Bresse to Savoie, to be closer to our various resorts. We have also diversified our activities with the management of accommodation, catering and leisure facilities, enabling us to offer a comprehensive and consistent range of services.
The group has also evolved in terms of its structure: we have opened up our capital to investors, while retaining a family majority. As a result, players such as Crédit Mutuel Equity, Caisse d’Épargne Rhône-Alpes, BPI and ILP hold around 35% of the capital, but the majority remains in the hands of the family. This allows us to remain true to our values while benefiting from the resources to continue our expansion.
In 2022, Labellemontagne generated approximately £7.5 million in turnover, with 250 year-round employees and more than 1,000 seasonal workers. However, as our sector is constantly evolving, we have to face new realities, such as the withdrawal of certain local authorities and the effects of climate change. For example, we have sold the management of the Bardonecchia resort in Italy to refocus on France.
Our current strategy is based on several areas: first, the consolidation of our snow-related activities, with significant investments in artificial snow and infrastructure development. Second, the diversification of our resort activities. For example, we have developed leisure activities with mountain restaurants, toboggan parks and, more recently, a four-season tobogganing project at Col de la Schlucht.
In addition, we have undertaken diversification outside the mountains with projects such as the urban cable car in Namur and peri-urban water parks. We are also developing indoor leisure centres, incorporating activities such as bowling, trampolining and immersive games, with the first centre currently under construction in Épinal.
Finally, we are also working on the digitalisation of our services with the development of a marketplace dedicated to our resorts, enabling us to sell our products and those of other operators present in our destinations.
In short, we have remained a family business, while adapting to market developments and new challenges in our sector. We have diversified our activities and expanded our presence to ensure the sustainability of the company, while remaining true to our values: strong regional roots, a social mission and respect for the environment.
What are your passions?
Jean-Yves Remy: I have several passions, and they have evolved over time. I am a sporty person, and sport has always been part of my life. Among my passions, the mountains occupy a central place. I used to go mountaineering, although I do it a little less now. I also have a keen interest in cars, especially vintage cars. Even though I’m not a mechanic, I’d like to take the time one day to learn more about the technical side of things; it’s my current passion, so to speak.
At the same time, I enjoy reading, hiking and, more generally, anything to do with nature. Skiing is also one of my favourite activities, as it perfectly combines sport and connection with nature. I like to recharge my batteries in these environments.
Travel is another great passion of mine. Although things have been quieter on that front in recent years, particularly due to current events, I have travelled extensively in the past and intend to continue doing so in the future.
Jean-Yves Remy, what are your main motivations? Why do you get up in the morning?
Jean-Yves Remy: I must say that my main motivation is the project I have invested in as a business owner. Since I started working, it has taken up 99% of my time. Being at the head of Labellemontagne is both my passion and my daily driving force. I am fortunate to find great satisfaction in what I do. It’s a job that doesn’t feel like work, because I enjoy doing what I love.
What motivates me is seeing the concrete achievements we accomplish, collaborating with my teams, and building and structuring territories. I also enjoy challenges. At Labellemontagne, we often deal with complex issues, but that’s precisely what I enjoy. I like to take on challenges that require thought and innovation.
It allows me to live life at 100 miles an hour, without ever getting bored. Boredom would certainly have been a difficult situation for me, but fortunately, I have never experienced it.
What is your greatest satisfaction?
Jean-Yves Remy: My greatest satisfaction is above all personal: it is having started a family. I hope I have passed on to my children the values that are important to me, such as hard work, rigour and honesty. I have two daughters, and that means a lot to me.
Professionally, I take pride in the fact that I have made a family business thrive, even in an environment that was not always favourable. Running a ski business in the Vosges mountains was not easy at first, but despite the complexity, we have managed to give this company a solid, industrial dimension. Of course, we have to re-evaluate things every day, and uncertainty is a constant reality, especially in recent years, with many unexpected events. However, this is also something I appreciate as a business leader: navigating uncertainty.
My satisfaction also comes from the fact that, after all these years, I can look at myself in the mirror and be at peace with myself, my employees, my shareholders, my family and our financial partners. I believe I have conducted myself with integrity and honesty, and that means a great deal to me.
Do you have any regrets?
Jean-Yves Remy: I would say that I have no regrets as such, because I believe we cannot afford to have them. What’s done is done, even if certain decisions have inevitably had an impact. One of the downsides of my professional commitment is certainly that I haven’t devoted enough time to my family and my personal projects. It’s a difficult balance to strike.
On the other hand, although I am a perfectionist to a certain extent, I sometimes wish I had been even more rigorous. However, I have always prioritised action and dynamism. Fortunately, I have been lucky enough to be surrounded by excellent colleagues, who have played a key role in the development and prosperity of the company. Their support has compensated for some of my shortcomings and ensured solid continuity.
Jean-Yves REMY, if you had a list of three wishes for the mountains, what would they be?
Jean-Yves Remy: My first wish for the mountains would be for them to become a peaceful place. The mountains inspire dreams, but they are also under enormous pressure. In these particularly complicated times, it is more necessary than ever to work together to create a harmonious environment. We must unite our efforts around major environmental issues, leadership and the strategies to be adopted. Unfortunately, this is becoming increasingly difficult due to growing divisions, whether around the environment or leadership. There is also a cultural struggle between the public and private sectors, which is undermining the prosperity of the mountains. My wish would therefore be for a peaceful environment that would allow the mountains to develop and maintain a sustainable social life.
My second wish is more general: that the world stabilises. We are experiencing incredible upheavals, and even though I belong to a generation that has not known war, it feels as if everything is constantly being called into question. This instability makes the future more uncertain.
Finally, my third wish concerns future generations. In this difficult context, marked by wars, the scarcity of natural resources and global warming, I hope that future generations will be able to live as well, if not better, than we do. That would be a real achievement.
Jean-Yves Remy, what does the future hold?
Jean-Yves Remy: As for the future, I’m not going to go back over the transformation of the Labellemontagne group, which needs to become more resilient in the face of the challenges we are facing. I imagine the future of the group with a little less “white”, i.e. less focused solely on winter sports, and a little more “blue” and “green”, with diversification into mountain activities more suited to all four seasons.
My role now is to organise a smooth handover to new teams, made up of young talent, so that they can calmly write the next chapter in the company’s history. I am not setting myself a specific deadline for this, but I intend to gradually reduce my activity. What is certain is that my current mission is to prepare for this transition in a structured and calm manner.
Alongside my career in the company, it has always seemed natural to me to get involved in community and employer organisations, just as my father did before me. I have always taken on responsibilities in this area, both locally and nationally, and I chaired the employer branch’s Social Commission for 18 years. I also held the positions of deputy chair and treasurer for six years within the union. However, I am also preparing to hand over these roles. If anyone asks for my opinion, my door will remain open, but I do not wish to remain in these roles indefinitely either.
