frmichelin1-2, Exercise 3: Michelin and the Tour de France

Model answer (check the details):

Michelin: a tyre company wanted more people to drive. It published a free guide with maps, garages and hotels to make driving easier, and later added restaurants and stars. Its aim was to sell tyres, not to judge food. It became a national and international institution and the world's best-known restaurant rating.

The Tour de France (see The Tour de France 2): a sports newspaper, L'Auto, wanted more readers and launched a bicycle race in 1903 to sell copies against its rival. Its aim was to sell newspapers, not to run a national sporting event. It became a national institution with a huge audience.

Similarities: both were created by a business for a commercial reason; both used the road and the growing mobility of France; both grew into something much bigger than the original purpose; both have a legend that polishes their origin; and both are now treated as a national asset.

Differences: the Tour is a public event that anyone can watch, while the guide is a private judgement whose workings are secret; the Tour had a rival paper (Le Vélo) and the Michelin Guide had no equal in its early years; the Tour changes in a visible way each year, while the guide's changes are mostly reported through the awards.

Care: both stories are told partly by the organisations concerned. Check them against independent histories.