"He put himself forward," said his cousin Myrna Giron-Ricard, who can remember him at the age of 12, "putting on a suit and tie" to visit his grandfather, Paul Ricard, the company's founder.

After graduating from the Emlyon Business School (formerly called École Supérieure de Commerce de Lyon), César Giron joined the Pernod Ricard Group in 1987, where he has spent his entire career.