Perpignan: New store concept being planned

They are keeping their cards close to their chest, but at the end of 2010 a new store concept that will become a model for a franchise chain is being launched in the big city of Perpignan in the south of France. With approximately 1,500 m², it will demonstrate what could eventually be achieved on a larger scale in stores including a restaurant and measuring 2,800 m² of retail space. It seems that finance for implementing the new building project has already been found.
(Picture: View into the store from the office and warehouse of Réso Bio)The project being planned (picture) is an eco shopping centre selling food, natural textiles, shoes, hiking equipment, home furnishings and wellness (centre de soin) on the Avenue d’Espagne, one of the main commercial thoroughfares in this city at the foot of the Pyrenees (117,000 inhabitants). There will be a library where shoppers can satisfy their curiosity, and it will have children’s toys and music and encourage people’s interest in organics, health and the environment. Dominique Magny estimates the product range will consist of 40 – 50,000 articles. “We want to supply the best in every product category,” she says.

The Paris agency Philippe Schmidt is responsible for the concept and the merchandising in the new project. This agency also developed the concept of the DIY chain Castorama. Building the new organic store is being planned as a first step that will be followed by a franchise model targeting conurbations with 200,000 and more inhabitants. About 500 m from the future site you see the organic supermarket Réso Bio, that has 250 m² of retail space. The owners are Gérard (picture) and Dominique Magny who, with two more Réso Bio stores, have a turnover of around 3 million euros a year. Gérard Magny is anticipating growth of about 10 % for 2009.

Réso Bio offers its regular customers a membership scheme. Without having to pay anything, customers register with name, address and e-mail, and campaigns and price information is mailed to them regularly. 50 basic foods in all categories are reduced in price by 15-20 %. Réso Bio has 9,700 registered members, and the number is increasing by roughly 20 % a year. (Picture: The price for members is displayed. The saving on orange juice is 18 %)

The Réso Bio supermarket is well stocked with getting on for 10,000 articles. The biggest proportion is dry goods (40 %), followed by dairy, meat and frozen products (20 %). Frozen products account for only 1 % of turnover, fruit and vegetables for 16 %, food supplements and natural remedies for 10 % and body care for 7 %. Bread, bakery products and sundries account for 7 %.

Goods are supplied by more than 200 companies, including a number of wholesalers: Bonneterre, based in Rungis near Paris, supplies some of the dry goods, Biocash in Montpellier provides fruit and vegetables, and Pural sends German brands to France. Magny is very keen on sourcing food in his region. He laughs: “I only stock wine from this region – our customers wouldn’t even think of buying a Bordeaux.” Cheese, juices, honey, vegetarian spreads, spiced sauces (sauces pimentés), bread, bakery goods, meat, olive oil, fruit and vegetables all come from the region and are delivered direct by the producer. (Picture: Good prices for regional and seasonal products: apricots at 2.35 euros/kg were selling elsewhere for 3.90 euros and more)

Gérard Magny doesn’t want to join a marketing and purchasing network like Biocoop or Bio-Monde because he wants to preserve his complete independence. “I buy my supplies where I want to,” says the 50-year old entrepreneur, who employs 13 people in his three stores. He explains that by adopting this approach he has better contact with the manufacturers, and it also enables him to be different from his competitors in what he can offer his customers. Although this calls for much more organisation, he points out that he has an employee who deals with all of this and who can offer discounting up to 20 % on account of lower purchasing costs. In his opinion, some wholefood wholesalers in France operate with too high margins. “20 % ought to be enough, but with many product groups we are talking about 40 %,” he says, based on his experience. In a nutshell: “Les grossistes sont trop gourmands.”

Most of his store is fitted out with two-metre high metal shelves (picture at top on left) that he took over from his predecessor. Customers turn to the right and after a few metres come to the very well stocked fruit and vegetable department (picture on right). With his favourable prices, Magny wants to put clear water between himself and his competitors – two Biocoop stores. The design of this shop is not a model for his new project. He explains that, when he took over the premises, he had to pay a high transfer fee, and this meant he did not have the resources for refurbishing the store.

Magny’s clear preference is for companies that are loyal to the specialist trade. For this reason, he has de-listed Ecover, apart from a couple of articles, and replaced them with Ecodoo and Etamine du Lys. “Since Ecover started supplying the conventional retail trade, we have been operating with other brands in the washing powder and cleaning materials segment.” And he adds: “I have a problem with manufacturers who grew big by supplying the specialist trade and are now getting into the mass market with their products.”

Réso Bio – it stands for “résolument bio” (definitely bio) was founded in 1981 in Céret, 40 km south of Perpignan. It was here that Magny and his wife launched an organic shop with 30 m² of retail space. In 1987 they set up a bakery that kept the shop supplied with bread and confectionery. In 1992 they moved the shop and bakery to new premises, each measuring 80 m². Their first large-scale store (300 m²) was launched in 2000 in Le Boulou, just outside Perpignan, and in 2005 their third store (250 m²) was opened in the Avenue d’Espagne, a short distance from the new project they are now planning.

Tip: www.resobio.fr