Our mission
Compagnie du Bois Sauvage is built on a long-term vision inherited from its founder: to provide shareholders with access to a diversified portfolio of assets that delivers sustainable wealth growth, while supporting entrepreneurs in the development of their projects.
As a family-owned wealth management investor, Compagnie du Bois Sauvage acts as a trusted partner, working alongside the management teams of the companies in which it invests. We favor a responsible, disciplined approach focused on creating long-term value.
As part of the Group’s strategic refocusing, our business is now based on three complementary pillars:
- Chocolate, the Group’s strategic core and main driver of value creation;
- Real Estate, oriented towards long-term wealth building, developed in a disciplined and self-financed manner;
- Investments via private equity funds, designed to strengthen portfolio diversification and optimize capital allocation.
True to our DNA, we are working with all our stakeholders to build authentic growth that is sustainable, tangible and supported by solid governance, in line with our signature: “Trusted partners for true growth.”
Key figures
For the group (EUR 1.000)
Equity
524.200
Intrinsic value
887.000
Per share (EUR)
Equity
323,70
Intrinsic value
552,66
Corporate governance principles
Good governance is fundamental, and with the same high standards that we apply to ourselves, we require rigor in our participations. Entrepreneurial excellence and good management of resources—whether human, technical, or financial—remain the sound foundations for the sustainable building of a company.
This requirement is reflected in the Good Governance Charter, approved by the Board of Directors on 19 December 2005 and last amended on 4 December 2023.
Déclaration de gouvernance
In het frans
Statuts
Board of Directors
Hubert OLIVIER
repr. Tigrane, SAS
2015-2027
Chair of Board of Directors,
Independent Director
Valérie PAQUOT
–
2010-2028
Director representing
the main shareholder
Marie-Noël PAQUOT
repr. Blacercel, SA
2023-2027
Director representing
the main shareholder
Gilles
VAN DER MEERSCHEN
–
2025-…
Director representing
the main shareholder
Karen DUMERY
repr. GoAct BV
2023-2027
Independent Director
Isabelle HAMBURGER
repr. HLW BVBA
2015-2026
Independent Director
Thibault VAN CRAEN
–
2023-2027
Independent Director
Nils VAN DAM
–
2023-2027
Independent Director
Christophe MIGNOT
–
2024-2028
Independent Director
Audit and Risk Management Committee
Karen DUMERY
Chair
Gilles
VAN DER MEERSCHEN
Member
Thibault VAN CRAEN
Member
Nomination and Remuneration Committee
Nils VAN DAM
Chair
Isabelle HAMBURGER
Member
Valérie PAQUOT
Member
Chief Executive Office
Benoit DECKERS
Chief Executive Officer
History and origins of the Group
Compagnie du Bois Sauvage, founded by Guy Paquot in 1991, is the result of the merger of nineteen companies with diverse origins and activities, some of which had been in existence for over a century. Their merger, which largely formalized an existing situation, fully aligns with the Group’s strategy of stability and its long-term economic and financial development. Today, the Group, controlled by the Paquot family, consists of Entreprises et Chemins de Fer en Chine, the main shareholder, and the operating company, Compagnie du Bois Sauvage.
The name “Bois Sauvage” comes from the location of the company’s headquarters in Brussels. The place known as “Bois Sauvage,” a distortion of the Dutch surname “Wilde Wouter,” was located long ago between the Cathedral of Saints Michael and Gudula and the first city walls of Brussels.
All that remains of these 13th-century walls are a few sections, notably the Bois Sauvage arcades, which were renovated by the company under the guidance of the Royal Commission for Monuments and Sites.
The restoration of the Bois Sauvage site earned the Society the Prix du Quartier des Arts in 1992.
Ten years later, in 2002, this prestigious award was once again presented to the Company for the renovation of the Treurenberg site.
In 2026, Compagnie du Bois Sauvage announced a major strategic refocusing. This step marks a clear turning point: a renewed focus on its core strengths, a strengthened commitment to chocolate, and the intention to present a clear and attractive profile to investors.
