A major transport player in Hauts-de-France since 1957 at the helm of the family business Place Mobilité, Alain Place handed over the keys to his 340 coaches to devote himself to a new adventure: wine. It all began in 2012, when a chance visit to Gonfaron sparked a love at first sight, leading him and his wife Brigitte to acquire Domaine de l’Heure Bleue and its 10 hectares at the foot of Notre-Dame-des-Anges.

The vineyard, fully restructured, converted to organic farming in 2016. Last October 9th, the entrepreneur took a further step by acquiring the 67 hectares of Château Réal d’Or.

“It was a sound purchase: we took over high-performing buildings and a productive vineyard, but the commercial side needed to be entirely relaunched,” he explains. An acquisition designed to pool the resources of both estates and develop wine tourism. True to his family’s entrepreneurial spirit, Alain Place entrusted this new Provençal chapter to his daughter Alice, who came from the luxury industry to develop the estate’s accommodation and experiences.

A two-generation adventure, between heritage and legacy.