Sonepar is sad to announce the passing of Roger Monnami, one of the Sonepar France’s historic leaders, on June 22nd, at the age of 87.
“The death of Roger Monnami, a sacred monster of our industry and of Sonepar, turns a page in the history of our adventure in France. An exceptional man, he was an unfailingly loyal friend, a passionate pioneer and a tireless worker. A builder, he relentlessly developed ‘his’ great South-East Region in France and delivered remarkable performances that helped finance the start of Sonepar’s conquest in the USA. He was my first mentor in the business, and his name will remain engraved in my memory, and in that of all the members of our family. Farewell my friend,” said Marie-Christine Coisne-Roquette, Sonepar Board Chairman.
Roger Monnami enjoyed a brilliant 48-year career with Comptoir Lyonnais d’Electricité, including 32 years within Sonepar France, leading the South-East region. He began his career in 1954, as a cashier at Comptoir Lyonnais d’Electricité (CLE) and worked his way up through the ranks. When Sonepar acquired CLE, he met Henri Coisne, Sonepar’s founder, and a natural complicity was instantly born between the two men.
Philippe Delpech, Sonepar President commented, “We are very sad about the loss of Roger who will always remain one of Sonepar France’s historic leaders. He grew Sonepar’s business and his focus on performance helped support the Sonepar’s Group conquests worldwide.”
Born in Lyon, Monnami spent many years developing Sonepar in this region by integrating numerous companies that were acquired by the Group. His knowledge of the electrical distribution market helped make Sonepar the region’s uncontested leader.
Monnami also spent a lot of time promoting the Rhône-Alpes region in France. He served on the board of many local academic institutions, including Lyon University. As a founding partner of Lyon’s “Fête des Lumières,” Roger played a key role in promoting Lyon as the City of Lights around the world. He was also behind the creation of a revolutionary electrical equipment showroom in Lyon called the “Mat’Electrique”, which still exists today and welcomes B-to-B and B-to-C customers.
In recent years, Monnami devoted a lot of his time to passing on his experience to younger generations, with the creation of the Ecole de l’Eclairage (Lighting School). In 2018, he published a book “Voyage au Coeur de la Lumière” (Trip to the Heart of Light), which looked back at his career as an entrepreneur in the electrical distribution business.
In 2001, Monnami was appointed to the rank of Chevalier in the French Merit Order by Jacques Chirac, the then-French President.
The Sonepar Group sends its sincere condolences to his wife Mijo, children, and grandchildren.
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