Although she was not "born in a rose" – her father was a tailor – Marlène Huré has nevertheless become the ambassadress of roses on Rungis market… "After a scientific cursus and two years studying medecine, at the age of 20 I decided to start a professional life, in the bank sector…Then I met Alain Huré, son and grandson of horticulturists – rose breeders in Mandres-les-Roses who became my husband in 1983. So I left the bank to go and work with him in the horticultural business he took over in 1976. With a total surface of more than one hectare, including 7000m² of heated glass greenhouses and plastic tunnels, it is exclusively used for breeding roses. It represents a yearly total of 40,000 rosebushes, 45 varieties and 400,000 stems. Fragrance making a great comeback, the best sellers are also the most fragrant, like the Yves Piaget, Papa Meilland varieties, and vintage garden roses with pastel and orange tones. Specialists in the French rose, we are recognised for the quality of our flowers: freshness, longevity, diversity, seasonality…Offering a quality product is our goal and drive.

I am in charge of the sales in Rungis and my husband is in charge of the production, along with one employee…Our customers are shop florists (80%) and market florists (20%), and we do very few deliveries. We work with a very beautiful product, but it is still very fragile and requires constant attention. You must be able to anticipate demand and develop new varieties each year. Production costs keep increasing, competition is getting tougher and French production is less and less present on the market. We are in Rungis since its creation and it is the only place where you can find such a wide range and an unparalleled choice in quality plants. "Just as the rose is the queen of flowers, Rungis is the king of markets…"