Parallel careers

Yesterday afternoon and evening, we had the honor to play host to Audrey and Thierry Convert, a visiting couple from France, whose life path has been amazingly influenced by the twists and turns of my own career. Just read this amazing story: In 1977, while working as product manager for Look ski binding, in Nevers, France, I was offered to move to America and work in a similar capacity at the firm's new subsidiary in New York.

Thierry took over my position at the French headquarters. In 1982, as Look moved to Vermont, I decided to remain in New York, changed jobs and was replaced by the same Thierry, who came to the U.S.A. with his wife and, for the second time, followed me in my former office space and picked up where I left off.

The company I went to work for was Lange ski boots; in 1986, one of my last assignments with that firm, was to check out Caber, a struggling Italian boot maker that Lange (then owned by Rossignol's founder and majority stakeholder) was interested in taking over for production and by the same token, launching the new Rossignol line.

I saw the writing on the wall and understood that if I stayed with Lange, I'd be sent to Italy to run the division. I didn't feel like moving back to Europe and instead chose to stay in the USA where I started a new venture distributing other ski products. Again, and for a third time, Thierry Convert was the one who took that Rossignol job, with the sole difference that he landed at the firm's headquarters near Grenoble, France.

"Third time's the charm" they say; following that last move, the “spell” was broken, but the three consecutive job changes remained totally astonishing! Last evening was a wonderful opportunity to reminisce these bygone days in the ski business and agree that fate do play an incredible role in our lives...