Origin’o: Modernisation Concept For Outdated Wholefood Stores in Belgium

Origin’o started up on 24 March 2006 with three existing shops and a new organic supermarket in Ghent in Belgium. When new organic supermarkets are founded the aim is not to compete with old established organic shops to try to deprive them of customers but to work together with the current operators to set up a modern retailing concept oriented towards fresh food. This is a collaborative approach that could  change the face of the organic industry in Belgium.

Picture: Michelline Dedapper und Yves Van Puymbroeck

The basic idea is as impressive as it is simple. The current model of wholefood shops founded 20 - 30 years ago is coming to an end - which is the case in Germany, too. The owners are in their fifties, overworked and  wondering how to carry on. There is  no prospect of their own children or newcomers to the industry taking over stores that have not been renovated for ages. So many a shop owner is pleased if he can get a modest sum for the stock and the shop fittings.

“For two years we have been working on this concept and getting the details right,” declares the 36 year old Yves van Puymbroeck. With management experience in the fashion and textiles industry, he is the group’s coordinator and concept developer. Six months ago he met up with Frederik Dossche, from the manufacturer of soya products Hobbit  (www.hobbit.be), and the charismatic Micheline Dedapper, who has been running a large specialist store (210 m²) in Leuven for the last 25 years. In the meantime, the enterprise was registered under the cover name Craenendonck N.V., which was the name of the street where one of the stores was located. Mr Puymbroeck explains the mystery: “We did not want to reveal the real name of our new stores at the early stage of  planning and concept development.” But now the veil of secrecy has been lifted and the first new store has been launched. The two wholefood shops that were taken over and the shop belonging to Micheline Dedapper called “Frau Holle” in Leuven are to be re-modelled in the near future so that they will soon be up and running again with the new design.

Mr Puymbroeck explains: “In all the shops you will see the same presentation, shop fittings and prices, and this uniformity means that we are recognised by the customers no matter where they are. And in all of this, as well as presenting our goods in an attractive and contemporary way, our main concern is our fresh food range.” In the new supermarket in Ghent, fruit and vegetables are kept in a chilled room that the customer can enter (picture). On the other hand, cut meats and meat have still to be developed, because the customer can only at present buy from a narrow vacuum-packed range. In terms of presentation, bread and bakery products (picture below), snacks, prepared dishes and the cheese counter are the jewel in the crown. Large-scale, evocative photographs on the walls create a pleasing natural ambience relating to organic production.

“A very important factor for us is employee development,” states Mr van Puymbroeck. “ They are our link with the customers, and the trust of the customers in us is in their hands.” This is the reason why they are to be given regular training sessions.  Another positive strategy is to place already well known employees in a particular store. This occurred in Ghent, where on the day the new organic supermarket opened and the old Gimsel store (100 m²) closed, the two former owners became the managers of the new supermarket, and another former employee also works there now. The store in Ghent employs eight people. In total, Origin’o has a workforce of 30, who are all committed to promoting  the business and  the running of the four stores. “It is not our intention to become competitors for the current wholefood shops, which have built up the market, but rather to create a new kind of cooperation,” says Mr Puymbroeck. For this reason, he does not intend  new stores to be located in districts that are already well provided for.

Origin’o has more ideas which are at the planning stage or already operating. They want to strengthen the bond between the customer and the company by means of a store card, a regular newsletter and a presence on the internet (www.origin-o.be).  Another plan is to run cookery courses in the kitchen above the store in Ghent, where various soups, tarts and salads are prepared fresh every day to be sold on the convenience food counter.

With its own brand O’ the company wants to offer customers a realistically priced alternative to other brand products while at the same time creating customer loyalty.  So far, the Origin’o own brand comprises 50 products, principally grain products and dried fruit. The total range consists of 5000 articles, of which 85 % are in the food category. Mr Puymbroeck estimates that the majority (about 95 %) are supplied by one of the three Belgian wholesalers or by the Dutch wholesaler Natudis. The Belgian suppliers for dry goods are Mannavita and Vajra, and Bio-Fresh for fresh foods.

The organisers’ idea is that the first stores will stay as points of reference in the enterprise as a whole, and then franchise stores could be added later. In general, they want a shopping area  of 200 - 250 m². They said that a floor space of more than 400 m² needed special permission in Belgium and was difficult to obtain. This is why the other Belgian chain Bio-Planète, that has three stores of about 1000 m² each, is finding it difficult to develop new locations.

“Our aim is to carry on shaping the future,” is the confident message of the 53 year old Micheline Dedapper, explaining a commitment that goes way beyond her former shop. “ And this venture should create a firm foundation for young people to get into the wholefood  business.”