A new name for a new objective: Institut Paul Bocuse becomes Institut Lyfe

Home News Press A new name for a new objective: Institut Paul Bocuse becomes Institut Lyfe

Institut Paul Bocuse, an international professional school of management, hospitality, foodservice and culinary arts, is evolving to become Institut Lyfe.

 A new name and a new identity to embody its strategic objectives.

A school that boasts than 30 years of excellence, awards and development

Founded in 1991, the Ecully School of Culinary Arts and Hospitality, taken over in 1998 by Gérard Pelisson, co-founder of the Accor Group, and Paul Bocuse, an early driving force behind the school, was renamed Institut Paul Bocuse in 2002, with the ambition of spreading French gastronomy and the Art of living in the world.

Over the past 20 years, the institute has accelerated its development and consolidated its position among the world’s elite schools of culinary arts, hospitality and foodservice through:

  • Accelerating its international approach, thanks to the development of its Alliance network, expanding the range of programmes offered in English, and welcoming 72 nationalities on campus;
  • Creating new programmes and partnerships: a Bachelor’s in pastry, an MSc in International Hospitality with the EM Lyon Business School, the School of Sauces with chef Yannick Alléno, holder of 3 Michelin stars, etc.
  • Creating a multidisciplinary Scientific Research Centre that is now at the cutting edge of research on the sustainable food transition
  • Having the school and its diplomas approved by the Ministry of Higher Education and Research and initiating a process of international accreditation and recognition of its diplomas (member of AACSB, EFMD, CFET, TFHTS, THE-ICE accredited)

A new campus to build the future of a unique school

In 2023, as part of its €25-million expansion and investment project, the institute is inaugurating a new centre dedicated to the hospitality industry and management courses, funded thanks to the contribution of numerous patrons, with the generous support of Gérard Pelisson and the Public Authorities (Auvergne Rhône-Alpes Region, Greater Lyon Metropolis, City of Lyon).

This new campus complements the historic campus dedicated to the Culinary Arts, which will be called “Paul Bocuse campus”, each campus referring to and paying tribute to the two founders of the school.

This project illustrates the school’s aim to become an international benchmark for excellence in training for professions in the hotel, restaurant and culinary arts sectors, and in hospitality in general. A school capable of supporting future generations and anticipating the societal challenges in our sectors for ever-increasing employability among our graduates.

A new name to communicate the diversity of courses and the richness of its ecosystem

In line with the school’s international objectives and positioning, a new identity has been adopted that embodies the modernity, innovation and uniqueness of Institut Lyfe. Work on the transformation has been ongoing for several years and was carried out in collaboration with a strategic committee made up of collaborators, graduates, patrons, employers and administrators, assisted by France’s leading experts in Naming and Branding (Cba, Nomen).

Institut Paul Bocuse becomes Institut Lyfe.

Short, inclusive and international, this new name reaffirms the origins of the institute, its roots in Lyon – capital of gastronomy and the French “art of living” since 1935 – and reflects the school’s broad reach, dedicated to the reinvention of tradition.

Lyon for

  • Excellence : The transmission of know-how, cultural heritage and the art of French hospitality at their highest levels of excellence through hard work, overcoming limitations, perseverance, respect and humility. Institut Lyfe for the future of tradition
  • Education: A school that, over and above ­teaching, supports intellectual and moral development to allow each student to achieve autonomy and empowerment, to think for themselves and define their own path with a keen awareness of social and environmental issues. Institut Lyfe trains global citizens
  • Exploration: A school that encourages each one of its students to explore the diversity of our professions, exceed their limits and dare to discover their creative abilities, revealing their talent and developing their entrepreneurial spirit and innovation. Institut Lyfe is a talent incubator
  • Experience: More than a school, Institut Lyfe is a fully-fledged life experience, within an international community that shares common values and pride in belonging, a true school of life. Institut Lyfe embodies a global community at the service of the French art of living

Around 100 permanent professionals with exemplary backgrounds and distinctions (Michelin stars, Meilleurs Ouvriers de France, Bocuse d’Or, etc.) and more than 200 teachers, PhDs, external speakers and industry experts form a unique community at the service of the transmission of excellence and the philosophy embodied by this new name.

Respectful of our two founders who will continue to inspire our teachers and our students from all over the world, Institut Lyfe builds on the wealth of their experience to illuminate the paths of transition that are crucial to future generations.

A new name to accompany the strategic objectives of a school rooted in the 21st century.

The ambition of Institut Lyfe is to strengthen its position among the leading management schools in culinary arts and hospitality worldwide, while maintaining its identity as a professional school and offering its innate French flair to students from all over the world. Thanks to the contribution of all of its teams, Institut Lyfe embodies the strategic aims of the school:

Strengthened internationalisation of its image, while respecting its uniquely French nature

  • Launch of an exchange and international mobility programme for all students from 2024
  • Expansion of the Alliance network to become the mark of quality for hospitality schools around the world
  • Promoting the recruitment of international professors and professionals

 Enrichment of the training offer to advance our professions

  • Launch of a programme dedicated to wine and beverages from the start of the 2024 academic year
  • Launch of several educational partnerships with leading chefs
  • Creation of new Master’s programmes with the best international institutions

Acceleration of the accreditation and academic recognition policy

  • Membership of the Conference of Grandes Ecoles from summer 2023, becoming the first professional school to join the restricted club of the best French training institutions
  • Objective of obtaining the status of a Private Higher Education Institution of General Interest (EESPIG)

A social and environmental commitment to enhancing the image and attractiveness of our professions

  • Continuation of the proactive policy of inclusion and social openness thanks to our foundation, doubling the number of scholarships in the next 5 years
  • Reinforcement of our commitment to the development of employers in our sectors, achieving 2,000 signatories of our relational charter “Time for Respect”, for compassionate management
  • Development of our environmental commitment (CSR) in all of our teaching and all of our actions, in order to prepare our students for the challenges of tomorrow

Institut Lyfe, a name with meaning for the lives of those who are ambassadors for the French art of living around the world.