The historic Rochet-Schneider brand disappeared long ago, but when exactly did the idea of creating a new Rochet-Schneider brand take root?
My name is François Pesez, and I hope my name will forever remain the least interesting piece of information you read on this site.
As I am the one behind this new kind of adventure, I will talk about myself in this blog, for the first and last time.
We can then move on to the real mission of the new Rochet-Schneider brand: letting you live your passion for cars differently, in particular by allowing you to create the cars you dream of – hence the slogan “Creator of dreamed cars”.
You will find here and there some information on “why” revive the name of a former French car brand from Lyon.
You will find here and there some information on “what to do” under the name of a former French car brand from Lyon.
Now, the “when”?
Was it as a child, when I was building my LEGO town with my habit of making series of the same little lunar jeep, or later when I was designing my own Formula 1 cars in LEGO Technic? Or when I fell asleep imitating the gear changes and the sound of the engines on an imaginary lap of the Le Mans 24 Hours circuit?
Or as a teenager, when at 17 I began studying automotive design at the European campus of the very American Art Center College of Design, and a certain Henrik Fisker let me drive his Alfa Romeo GTV6 along Lake Geneva. I would later see him launch a car brand under his own name twice.
Or later still, just after the 9/11 attacks, when I met in Berkeley, California, the people who would found Tesla three years later?
Throughout my life, I have followed with great respect Xavier De la Chapelle’s unwavering passion for keeping his eponymous car brand alive. From time to time I was involved in this adventure, and our conversations greatly nourished my thinking when creating Rochet-Schneider. The prospective design work I carried out for his brand resonates deeply in the new Rochet-Schneider.
Other people – beyond my family and friends – mattered too: Christophe Bonnaud at AutoHebdo; Alain Lonay, a friend from Art Center, who invited me to join Nissan Design; Bertrand Antoine of the Club De la Chapelle (and his crazy project, more on that later); Christian Martial of Ferrari Pozzi here in Lyon; Cyril Meziere, who hosts Rochet-Schneider in his premises, and the many caring people who work there.
All of them helped me grow personally and allowed this somewhat iconoclastic idea that is Rochet-Schneider today to mature.
Let us not forget the people whose talents gave birth to and brought to life the historic Rochet-Schneider brand at the very dawn of the automobile.
In the end, there is no exact “when”, but the idea crystallises at the precise moment, in a conversation between enthusiasts, when this question is inevitably asked: “What’s your dream car?”. If, here and now, I believe I can help you take that step and move towards a real, concrete answer, it is almost a duty for me to do everything to make it happen. And “duty” means “responsibilities”: I fully intend for this new field of possibilities to have a rigorous and responsible framework.
This brand will be yours, made just for you, to let you live your passion differently, more in tune with our times and our future, and to take a far fuller part in creation.
That is my only goal. Let’s enjoy ourselves!