Sommet Education announces investment in DUCASSE Education

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Sommet Education has today (6^th June 2019) announced an agreement under which it will become the majority shareholder of DUCASSE Education, a world-renowned institution of professional culinary and pastry arts schools.

This acquisition will allow Sommet Education, an education group specialising in hospitality management (Glion Institute of Higher Education and Les Roches Global Hospitality Education), to consolidate its position as industry leader and broaden its educational scope in preparing the next generation of hospitality and gastronomy professionals.

Since its foundation in 1999, DUCASSE Education has been transferring a high level of expertise in culinary and pastry arts through its network of schools in France and abroad. Training courses include Bachelor programmes, retraining courses, continuous vocational training and private lessons, delivered across three schools in France and two abroad (in the Philippines and soon in the United Arab Emirates), as well as through partnerships with overseas universities.

Rapid growth in the gastronomy sector and what has become known as the “customer experience industry” has created a real need for skilled professionals across a broad range of disciplines. Sommet Education and DUCASSE Education will now be able to build on their combined knowledge within the fields of culinary arts and hospitality management to offer excellent training opportunities for future professionals.

This joining of forces between Sommet Education, a leading hospitality management education group and ambassador of the Swiss education model, and DUCASSE Education, a network of world-renowned schools by celebrity chef Alain Ducasse, creates shared perspectives and long-term synergies between the two organisations.

DUCASSE Education’s development strategy will continue to focus on providing outstanding training, combining complete mastery of culinary skills with an avant-garde approach towards food. DUCASSE Education is set to open its brand-new Meudon campus in Paris. Sommet Education will fully support DUCASSE Education’s international expansion and the development of existing centres of excellence for culinary and pastry arts.

“The decision to join forces was extremely natural, given our strong synergies and shared values. Our highest value is passion: passion for hospitality and gastronomy, and passion for our educational mission. I strongly feel that both Sommet Education and DUCASSE Education are driven by a common ambition to achieve excellence. Our aims also align in terms of education and industry, as we both strive to provide outstanding training and produce skilled professionals,” said Alain Ducasse.

“We are thrilled to embark on this brand new partnership between the world leader of Swiss hospitality management training and the French leader in culinary and pastry arts. DUCASSE Education is founded and driven by the emblematic figure that is Alain Ducasse, who has inspired and continues to inspire generations of chefs across the world. This agreement is a big step forward for Sommet Education, as we broaden our training options and expand our area of expertise,” said Benoît‑Etienne Domenget, CEO of Sommet Education.

This agreement emphasises Sommet Education’s desire to strengthen its leading role in training future generations of skilled professionals in the hospitality and gastronomy industry. Its Glion and Les Roches institutions rank among the world’s top three hospitality management institutions for employer reputation, according to the 2019 QS World University Rankings.