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The heir to businessman Jacques Saadé made CMA CGM the most profitable group in France. Exclusive meeting in Marseille.
Through Francois Miguet
The controls. Rodolphe Saadé in the control room of the Compagnie maritime d’affrètement-Compagnie generale maritime (CMA CGM), in Marseille, on December 13, 2022. Not only does the businessman pilot the world’s third largest maritime carrier, but he bought the daily “La Provence” in September 2022 and signed a sponsorship contract with OM in November.
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NOTul need, from Marseille Saint-Charles station, to indicate the precise address to the taxi: boulevard Jacques-Saadé, 4, quai d’Arenc. “Are you going to the CMA CGM? Here we go ! » launches the driver. Here, we no longer present the former Compagnie maritime d’affrètement, the city’s leading private employer and third largest shipping company in the world behind the Italian-Swiss MSC and the Danish Maersk. Nor its all-powerful 52-year-old CEO Rodolphe Saadé. Since becoming the jersey sponsor of Olympique de Marseille in November after winning the daily Provence under the nose and beard of billionaire Xavier Niel for 81 million euros, he is part of the local pantheon, just like Zinedine Zidane or Bernard Tapie.
The car parks at…
KHANH RENAUD FOR “LE POINT” – cma-cgm/sp – JEAN PAUL PELISSIER – LUDOVIC MARIN/AFP (x2) – Sebastien ORTOLA/REA FOR “LE POINT” – Alain JOCARD/AFP – Bruno LEVY/CHALLENGES-REA – DRFP/ Leemage via AFP – Romain BEURRIER/REA – Eric PIERMONT/AFP – Abd Rabbo-Taamallah/ABACA