A Banque you can…………. Bank on
It has been fashionable over the past 12 months or so to launch a few verbal grenades at Banks and the banking system in general.
Impersonable service, high charges, lack of loan funds have all come under the spotlight, or often, under the blow torch.
Subscribing to the principle of ‘credit were credit is due’ (if you’ll forgive that terrible pun!) I am pleased to write about a Bank whose performance is, well….. highly creditable.
Banque Rhone Alpes in Beaune have been our personal and business bank since our arrival in Burgundy in 2002.
What we like about them is the fact that they are very customer service orientated, and we are able to get face-to-face with real people.
In 8 years we have had only two ‘counsellors’. I recall at one time in New Zealand we seemed to have a different advisor every three months.
Honorine De Mari and Angelique Gaudillere (pictured above) typify Rhone Alpes service. They are very knowledgable about all the bank’s products, and they also project warm and friendly personalities.
The advice we receive from Rhone Alpes has always been very soundly based and helpful to the extent where it places our interests first. Recently they proposed some changes to our financial arrangements which not only improved our cash flow but resulted in lower bank fees for us.
The branch in Beaune is well balanced in terms of staff/customer ratio, we rarely are keep waiting at the counter for service.
The stability of management and staff has also enabled us to develop a good rapport. We regularly have exchanges about topical matters such as the World Cup, holidays, weather, and of course whenever the All Blacks and Les Bleus are contesting Rugby tests.
The only small niggle is that they will only handle cash during the mornings. C’est la vie.
But in his world where automation, phone systems asking you to press 1,2,3, etc, and distantly located centralised call centres it is a delight to be dealing with humans blessed with brains and pragmatism.
Definitely a Banque to Bank on!
A Bientot, Bruce.