Basil Gertis

50 years old
Born in Vienna - Austria
International Baccalaureat
HEC Geneva
5 languages – mother tongue level for French, English and German

President of the Var CCI

Basil Gertis was elected on November 23, 2021 at the President of the Var Chamber of Commerce and Industry for 5 years. He is also Vice-President of the Regional CCI Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur.

His program rests on three strategic priorities : the establishment of a participatory and exemplary governance; a change of trajectory to focus mainly on the economy, representing the interests of 69 000 entreprises in the sectors of the industry, commerce and services; a deployment on the territories with an organization of both elected officials and the technical expertise of staff members so that the CCI confirms its major role in staying close to the field.

Basil Gertis was an elected member of the Var CCI’s previous mandate (2016-2021), at first part of the finance commission followed by 4 years as territorial advisor for the West Var – an exciting and demanding commitment that taught him a lot about the intricate functioning of the CCI, the office meetings in particular, but which also allowed him to meet many traders, business leaders, local elected officials and public executives.

President and Founder of the company YACK SAS

Basil Gertis created his first company at the age of 25 in Saint-Cyr-sur-Mer, in an agricultural depot in the field of sports equipments. "That's where I unloaded my first containers with my own hands."

At 28 years the age old, with his wife and “a few francs in his pocket”, still in the same warehouse, he founded his current company, SAS Yack. 3 employees at the time, Yack currently employs around sixty people for a turnover of €35 million; it is the leading player in the field of air conditioning in the South Region (PACA).

To mark this local anchoring and convey the values of sport, and even if the Var represents only 5% of the company's turnover, YACK has been supporting the RCT (Rugby Club of Toulon) for 8 years. The company is also a sponsor of PAUC (Pays d’Aix Université Club Handball).

Representing Mitsubishi Heavy Industries for more than 15 years, Basil Gertis is the daily link between a global industry giant and a thousand VSE-SME customers in the building and energy transition sectors. For the future, his wish is to continue to grow his business “and with a bit of luck, maybe one day my sons will take up the torch - if they want to of course!”

Basil Gertis is also a volunteer administrator locally in a mutual banking group.

Passionate sportsman, very attached to the sea and to nature, windsurfer, dive master.