Christine Birch (asker) Apr 2, 2019:

Thanks so much for all your excellent suggestions and references. It is indeed from a Swiss agency!

Verginia Ophof Apr 2, 2019:

I would go with : You can shadow me.

Tony M Apr 2, 2019:

Not just Swiss... I hear this sort of expression quite often, in things like my dentist's: « Je vous laisse vous installer dans la salle d'attente, le docteur viendra vous chercher. » « Je vous laisse attendre... » etc.

Charles Davis Apr 2, 2019:

Is it just Swiss? The person whose comments on this expression I quoted is based in Lyon and doesn't say anything about it being Swiss. Admittedly Lyon is not very far from Switzerland. Here it is again, clearly with the same meaning, in a recent novel called Maternité by Françoise Guérin, who is also from Lyon (interestingly). This is apparently a nurse addressing a pregnant woman in a hospital:
"Madame Verrier ? C'est à vous. Je vous laisse me suivre ?"
https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=xgpZDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT227

Here's another from a detective novel, set in the United States, by Jérôme Fort, who was born in Grenoble:
https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=GwDHBwAAQBAJ&pg=PA210&lp...

So it does seem to be used in France, though perhaps specifically the part near Switzerland?

Carol Gullidge Apr 2, 2019:

@ Christine it would be well worth consulting with the client, and clarifying if this text is indeed the Swiss French version of "Suivez-moi", as Nicolas - rather convincingly - suggests it might be!

Charles Davis Apr 2, 2019:

@Christine You may find the following useful; it offers advice on common expressions to use or avoid:

"Je vous laisse me recontacter
Le verbe "laisser" est déjà traumatisant en lui-même, vous le reconnaîtrez. Lorsqu’il est, de surcroît, suivi d'un verbe invitant à l'action, votre interlocuteur ressent (toujours inconsciemment) un inconfort. On s'attendrait plus à entendre : "je vous laisse vous reposer" plutôt que "je vous laisse me suivre" !
Ainsi, pour inviter à l'action, préférez justement « je vous invite à me suivre », tellement plus positif et engageant."
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/ce-que-je-ne-dirai-plus-ou-né...

So this is just a way of saying "Je vous invite à me suivre". And since this is apparently the beginning of the conversation, and the person addressed has just arrived, it must surely mean "Would you like to follow me?", your first suggestion, or "Please follow me", or words to that effect.