HOW TO EVOKE THE MEMORY OF RENÉ AVANTHAY, FOUNDER OF THE REAL ESTATE AGENCY AVANTHAY SA, IN A FEW WORDS?

What comes to mind above all is his commitment as a citizen, his fight to improve the life of a small mountain community that opened up to tourism over 150 years ago. In the 1950s, he was part of a group of pioneers, such as Jean-Maurice Trombert and Michel Bochatay, who very early on understood the need to unite the destiny of the small resort of Val d'Illiez with that of its French neighbors to create the largest single ski area in the world: the Portes du Soleil. It was these friends who, ignoring local rivalries, gave the impetus to put the valley on the international tourism map, thereby creating new and lasting economic opportunities for its inhabitants.