FRANCOIS-MELCHIOR DE POLIGNAC

About FRANCOIS-MELCHIOR DE POLIGNAC

François-Melchior de Polignac is the Chief Executive Officer and board member of Maisons du Monde, one of Europe’s leading home décor and furniture retailers. Since 2023, he has also chaired the Maisons du Monde Foundation, reinforcing the group’s environmental and social commitments. His profile combines corporate transformation, large-scale retail leadership and international management experience. He began his career at L’Oréal in 1995, working in financial control for Lancôme Italy, before joining The Boston Consulting Group in Paris. In 2000, he moved to Carrefour, first as a member of the mergers and acquisitions team and then in a series of operational and functional roles in France. He later relocated to Poland, where he was notably responsible for the supermarket business unit. These early years built a strong foundation in finance, strategy, restructuring and large-scale retail operations. In 2009, he returned to Paris to lead a major organizational transformation program, delivering more than €2 billion in efficiencies. He was then appointed CEO of Romania in 2011 and CEO of Belgium at the end of 2013. In 2018, he became Executive Director, Group Merchandise, and joined Carrefour’s Executive Committee. From 2020, he served as Executive Director and Zone CEO for Belgium, Romania and Poland. His background therefore spans country leadership, multi-market zone management and large-scale performance programs. At Maisons du Monde, he brings this international retail expertise to a business that continues to evolve through a multichannel and global approach. His responsibilities sit at the intersection of strategy, operational execution, financial discipline and customer experience. As Foundation chair, he also oversees a long-standing philanthropy platform focused on forests and biodiversity; the foundation has supported 68 projects and distributed nearly €10 million over ten years. A graduate of HEC Paris and holder of a master’s degree in International Relations from the University of Cambridge, François-Melchior de Polignac stands out as a seasoned executive with a strong record in transformation, retail leadership and responsible governance.