Origin’O: New retail project in Brussels

Origin’O started with three shops in March 2006 in Belgium. This number has now increased to six. The aim is to take over existing smaller whole food businesses and to turn them into successful specialist stores. The priority is expansion with social standards, so that shops in the vicinity are not subject to competition. The man behind Origin’O is Frederik Dossche, the owner of the manufacturers Hobbit and Abinda and of the wholesaler Biofresh.

Picture: elegant doorway

In Brussels, the provision of organic food via the specialist trade is nothing short of a catastrophe. “There is huge potential and I am certain a big organic supermarket would be successful, but someone has to get it going and take a chance,” says Yves van Pymbroeck. Together with Michelline Dedapper (picture), he is the joint managing director of Origin’O, a company that would like to grow organically and revive the Belgian market. (See our report)

Now at last, one specialist organic store with 100 m² of retail space is being planned for the little Rue Middelbourg in the upmarket Boitsfort (Bossforde) district. For this to happen, a the beginning of December 2007, the shop Le Panier Bio in the same street was taken over. This mini-shop (30 m²),that was founded in 1997, had seen better days and its 33 year-old owner wanted a change of direction. So the shop is being run on behalf of Origin’O by Jean François Olivier (picture right: Yves Van Puymbroeck/left and François Olivier) until the new premises, about 100 m away, have been renovated and fitted out. The plan is to open the store in March 2008. The roughly 60-80 customers a day, who on average spend 16 Euros each time they shop, are a sound foundation on which the new shop can build. Mr Olivier worked for 26 years in organic agriculture, mainly in fruit and olive growing. He also worked in an organic restaurant in Rome. Three years ago he became associated with Origin’O.

Origin’O operates very cautiously when setting up new shops. The first step is looking for senior staff and locations; then the employees are trained. In 2006, 11 staff were given further training via evening courses that lasted two years, and another 11 started in 2007. Customers themselves are being taught in-store by means of cookery courses that have been on offer since September 2007 in Origin’O shops in Ghent, Bruges and Roeselare. The same motivation lies behind a monthly newsletter.

The principal shop in Leuven (about 30 km east of Brussels) was converted very successfully by Michelline Dedapper in March 2007.  It was founded in 1981, and it was ready for remodelling and enlargement to 210 m². The walls were re-painted and in came lots of colour; attractive photos were hung up. All this was good for turnover – Mrs Dedapper is expecting a growth of 13 % in 2007.

During the week, 450 to 500 customers come through the doors; on Saturdays the number is around 650. “We exist mainly because of fresh food,” says Michelline Dedapper. “Fruit, vegetables, bakery goods, milk products and meat products account for 60 % of turnover.” Meat and sausage products occupy one metre of chilled shelving and could easily be extended. The splendid presentation of fruit and vegetables could not be bettered. At the beginning of December there were 80 different fresh green items, and in summer there are as many as 100. To encourage customer loyalty, Origin’O has introduced a customer card in all its shops. This card is now used by 14,000 customers, with half doing their shopping in the Leuven store.

With the move of the first Origin’O store in Brussels to new premises, the Belgian capital is experiencing the new concept for the first time. Nevertheless, the rate of expansion is rather slow bearing in mind the market potential. The six established shops only have 900 m² of retail space. The aim is to have 10 to 15 shops, but in fact the number could easily be higher. One can only hope that more capital will be invested and bigger stores created. This is what the excellent Origin’O concept deserves, and it is certainly equal to the challenge of the future.

www.origin-o.be