Daughter of a floral design specialist, Cécile Gillet was born in Montreuil-sous-Bois (Seine-Saint-Denis). Cécile graduated from the Chérioux professional lycee in Vitry-sur-Seine (Val-de-Marne) with an architect's technician-assistant certificate, and then went on to study at the Ecole Supérieure d’Architecture for a further year. She worked her way through her studies by selling fruits and vegetables at markets and decided she liked the business. She got a job working at the cut flowers pavilion through her father who had worked at a company in the C1 pavilion at Rungis for a number of years. "I joined Fenoy in October 2000 armed with only a limited knowledge of the foliage sector. However, after a year of hard work during which time I mastered an increasing range of responsibilities, Mr Fenoy suggested that I take on his business. Although I was very interested I felt I still lacked the experience necessary to manage a whole company. I finally took the plunge when my younger brother Christophe (25 years old) decided to quit the catering business and agreed to run the company jointly with me. He arrived on 1 April 2004 and I became company director on 1 May 2004. Our product range (350 articles over the year) includes foliage from the Ile-de-France and the Midi regions, together with branches and underwood products. After the transition, we rearranged the shelving to make the store more attractive to customers, and now repeat this every season. We sell ivy, rhododendrons, bay-trees that form very good hedges, cedar, phytolaca (American grape), eucalyptus and photinia; all depending on the season.

At the moment, we have Lady apples, boulestrier, heather, vine and fig leaves, chestnut, myrtle, raspberry bushes, wild Italian grevillea, palm trees, chamaerops (palm) and lentisk, not forgetting phoenix leaves, forest mosses, tree trunks, coloured foliage, and so on. Ivy is still our best-selling product. Our sales break down as 60% foliage, 30% forest mosses and 10% branches. Our customer base includes wholesalers, floral design specialists, fishmongers, cheese and dairy traders, event management agencies, fruit and vegetables traders and purchasing groups. Overall, Rungis Market attracts its customers by providing a wide range of products with high consumer appeal. However, the flowers sector could be developed more effectively to meet changes in the market for floral decoration and design.