Choose Paris Region merged with the Regional Tourism Committee on July 1st, 2023 and is now the one-stop shop for investors, visitors, producers and talent from around the world, with dedicated brands for each of these audiences: Invest Paris Region, Visit Paris Region, Film Paris Region, Work&Live Paris Region. With major international sporting events such as the 2023 Rugby World Cup and the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games just around the corner, the agency is ready to speak with one voice to all these audiences in order to best promote the Paris Region brand.

Combining forces to boost the influence of Paris Region as a destination

For the first time in 2022, Paris Region is Europe's most attractive Region for international direct investment, including the UK, in the EY European Investment Monitor 2023 barometer. In 2023, it has also regained first place in the "European Cities and Regions of the Future" ranking drawn up by fDi Intelligence, the inward investment division of the Financial Times. This ranking also awarded Paris Region the title of best "foreign direct investment strategy" in Europe, including the UK.
It is also the world's most-visited destination, with a tourism industry that showed strong momentum in 2022 and an accelerating recovery, with over 44 million tourists welcomed (vs. 50.6 million in 2019, the benchmark year). The sector's economic spin-offs involve more than 500,000 jobs and generated revenues of 19.6 billion euros in 2022 (nearly 22 billion euros in 2019).
Following the merger of activities related to the film and audiovisual industry (Film Paris Region) with Choose Paris Region in 2019, the merger with the Regional Tourism Committee will allow for even greater coherence and attractiveness. As a result, Paris Region is positioning itself alongside the world's other major cities as a global host. Other global cities have already brought tourism and international attractiveness under a single umbrella: London, Cape Town, Amsterdam, Milan, Helsinki, Rotterdam, Lille, Nantes, Rennes, Toulouse...

This merger gives the Region a new ambition in terms of its attractiveness and allows it to pursue a long-term ambition for the Region's development in terms of impact, social inclusion, economic development and innovation, and to increase the effectiveness of measures to boost regional attractiveness.

A pivotal moment for the capital Region and the country

This merger, effective July 1st , 2023, comes at a pivotal time for the Region and the country: ahead of major international events (the 2023 Rugby World Cup and the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games), after the Brexit, and a year away from the first major deliveries of the Grand Paris Express.

This new organization will be the one-stop shop for Paris Region’s investments linked to the Olympic Games and for international visitors. It will also be the one-stop shop for all companies, local authorities and stakeholders who want to showcase their initiatives in the context of the Olympic Games (in terms of sustainable development, innovation or local dynamics).

"With this merging of the teams in charge of investment, tourism and the film and audiovisual industry, as requested by the Region's President Valérie Pécresse, we now have an even greater ambition to increase our Region's influence and offer a better 360-degree Paris Region experience for all our audiences. All our partners in the Region, both public and private, French and international, are supporting us in this decision to co-construct the regional offer and bring together the entire Paris Region ecosystem," said Alexandra Dublanche, Chairman of Choose Paris Region and Vice-Chairwoman in charge of Economic Development, Attractiveness and Innovation for Paris Region.

A collective project to enhance Paris Region's global attractiveness

Alexandra Dublanche, the current Chairwoman of Choose Paris Region, will continue as Chairwoman, accompanied by Lionel Grotto as CEO.

In September, a General Meeting will be called to elect the new members of the Board of Directors. The new agency is already housed on the premises of the Paris Region Regional Council in St Ouen and will later move to the premises on rue Barbet de Jouy that were formerly occupied by the Regional Council and will become a showcase for the Region's attractiveness.
The agency will rely on its public and private partners to collectively build the regional offer and communicate together internationally.

"Paris Region's ambition is to create a major attractiveness agency to strengthen the Region's positioning in the eyes of investors, tourists, international talent and film productions. The Regional Tourism Committee (CRT) is part of this new drive to make Paris Region the best destination in the world," said Eric Jeunemaitre, Chairman of the Regional Tourism Committee.

"Nowadays, it's the company employees who decide where they want to live and work. New dimensions linked to quality of life, heritage and real estate quality need to be integrated to build a modern city that can rise to the challenges that lie ahead. Our targets are becoming less and less segmented: investors, business and leisure visitors, people who watch films made in Paris Region, residents or future residents... We need a global approach, and that's what we're building. This is a very exciting new chapter!" said Alexandra Dublanche.