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By his own admission, Ernest Brin never imagined he would “make a career” at the port. When he joined the department as a supervisor in 1989, he had “no plans in mind.” Certainly not that of stepping into the director’s shoes twenty years later, in 2009. But the man let himself be guided by his love for service and interacting with people. So much so that he didn’t even notice time passing. So, when the time came to announce his retirement, he couldn’t help but be overcome with emotion. On Saturday, April 11, in a symbolic venue steeped in a history that is also his own—namely, the La Capricieuse room at the harbor master’s office—Ernest Brin declared: “There are moments when words carry more weight than usual. This is one of them. It is not just a position I will be leaving at the end of June; it is a part of myself that I am entrusting to the future.”
To bid farewell to the man who has steered the destiny of the port of Saint-Barthélemy for so many years, a few officials (not the president of the Collectivité, Xavier Lédée, who was away in Aruba), partners, professionals from the port and maritime sectors, and close friends and family gathered. “When I started here, I simply wanted to serve,” insists Ernest Brin. “To serve a port, but above all to serve an island, a community, an economy, and a maritime identity unique in the world.” An idea that likely never crossed the mind of the little boy born in the Public neighborhood a few decades earlier.
Early Days in the Hotel Industry
Yet Ernest Brin grew up in the right environment, with a father in the navy. As for his mother, she worked at Jean-Yves Froment’s textile manufacturing company for the tourism industry. He attended school in Sainte-Marie, in Colombier. “We walked there,” he recalls. “We took the Grand Savane path.” By the time he reached ninth grade, the teenager he was then wasn’t quite sure which path to take. “But I was good at English and I liked interacting with people,” he explains. “I went into hospitality and catering at Baimbridge in Les Abymes.” Feeling quite at ease, he continued the adventure and headed off to a hospitality high school in Dinard, in Brittany. Then came the return to Saint-Barthélemy.
“I joined the Manapany, which was about to open,” recalls Ernest Brin. “For two months, I tended the gardens while waiting for the furniture to arrive.” ” For his first steps into the working world, he took on a job he had learned. “I wanted to serve,” he says. “But I was also responsible for catering, inventory management, and so on. I worked seven days a week for at least five months, with a smile. I met some of the world’s elite at that establishment. Versace, the Boeing family, politicians, artists (he pauses and names Mike Jagger and Jerry Hall)… We did it all for the fun of it.” He recalls the creation of a maître d’hôtel competition. “I won two or three of them,” he says with a laugh.
“I learned on the job”
In 1989, Mayor Daniel Blanchard was hiring for the harbor master’s office. The Transat was coming, and extra hands were needed. “At the time, I was thinking of moving to Italy, but it didn’t work out,” says Ernest Brin. “So I went to the port.” He started as a simple supervisor. “I learned on the job,” he assures us. “The team grew, and I became a port security officer.” In 2009, Director Bruno Gréaux stepped down. Another Bruno, Magras, president of the newly formed Territorial Collectivity, offered him the directorship. Long gone are the days when, as a teenager, Ernest Brin used to skateboard in the port.
“It has been an honor for me,” he says. “Working with President Bruno Magras, and with Michel Magras as well. We saw the port’s boom coming, with more and more boats.” During his speech on April 11, Ernest Brin added: “Managing the port of Gustavia has always been, for me, much more than an administrative task. It has been a commitment to serving the territory, its economic development, its international appeal, and the preservation of its environmental and social balance.”
Looking back on his years in office, he derives “great satisfaction” from all that has been accomplished. “Of everything entrusted to me, I don’t think anything went wrong,” he says. “Everything I proposed has been implemented and is working. But there is still plenty to do. I still have plenty of ideas!” Memories, too.
Like when, three weeks after taking office in 2009, he had to make the decision to evacuate the port on December 27 due to a strong swell approaching. He thinks of Hurricane Gonzalo in 2014, which dragged 43 boats to the bottom. Irma in 2017, of course. But also the evening of February 4, 2023, when a CMA CGM container ship, the Mimer, ran aground just a few meters from the commercial port. “I wasn’t easy to get along with during the busy times of the year, but I was constantly worried,” he sighs. “People criticize my temperament, but I’m convinced that’s what allowed me to keep the port running. Between the sea adventurers and the billionaires, you can’t make distinctions—you have to make sure things are done by the book.”
When he steps down from his position, Ernest Brin already knows what he’ll do with his time. “Family vacations, for starters,” he smiles. “And then I have plenty of projects.” Like continuing his work for healthcare on the island as president of Fémur. As for the identity of his successor, it is not yet known. The Collectivité has published a call for applications for the position on... April 1.
