Club welcomes new Executive Director Didier Saugy with tacos and a toast
National Press Club President Eileen O’Reilly, Club members and staff welcomed new Executive Director Didier Saugy during Club-favorite Taco Night June 16. The occasion marked his long-anticipated arrival following outgoing Director Bill McCarren’s announcement of his retirement in 2022.
After opening his brief remarks with a smile and an apology for his accent (“I am from Switzerland and speak French,” he said), Saugy said he regards his new position as a healthy challenge. “This is a great opportunity,” he said, “to bring [the Club] back to what it once was before COVID and bring new ideas for members.”
Former general manager of the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Hong Kong (FCC), Saugy is accustomed to healthy challenges. Besides managing a club that serves more than 2,200 members and boasts three restaurants and two bars, he successfully led the FCC through the pro-democracy “yellow umbrella” protests in Hong Kong, the COVID-19 pandemic and pressures faced by the free press under the Chinese government.
"[Saugy] has big shoes to fill," said O'Reilly, in reference to McCarren’s retirement, at the welcoming event before raising a toast to Saugy. "At the Club,” she said, “we focus on three main things: supporting both journalists and communicators, sustaining our healthy restaurant business, and protecting members and staff."
The Club’s search committee that approached Saugy as a potential successor were enthusiastic about his experience in those very areas, in addition to his prowess in to leading the FCC through its unique challenges.
O'Reilly is optimistic about Saugy’s tenure as executive director. "We are looking forward to working together on initiatives,” she told the Wire. “While the president changes every year, there is consistency with having a director in place [for many years]," she said. For the time being, she said, she and Saugy are learning the ropes together and anticipate initial proposed changes emerging in the latter half of the year.
In an interview with the Wire prior to the Taco Night welcome, Saugy said his main takeaway from leading the FCC is that he brings “adaptability,” especially in facing journalistic issues. Journalists in Hong Kong, he noted, need greater protections and care in reporting news under Chinese regulations that change frequently.
When asked about the future of food and beverage at NPC, Saugy’s face lit up. He received culinary training in Fechy, Switzerland -- acclaimed for its fine dining -- and was a chef running his own café and restaurant in the world-renowned region for years. He later served at well-known hotels and other organizations as a food and beverage manager across Australia and China before settling into his role at the FCC.
"We want members to come here and enjoy their Club,” he said. I want to do a [vegetarian] 'Green Night' on Mondays, have the bar full every day, change and improve some dishes, portions -- showcase [our] full potential." How about Hong Kong dim sum? "I was thinking about bringing a dim sum trolley -- why not?" he said with a laugh.