When did the business start ?

It was founded by my great-grandfather in Gentilly, near Paris, and my grandfather Pierre took over the farm. After his expropriation, he moved to Villejuif in 1930 where we are now. My father Jean succeeded him in 1963 and he expanded the business, adding 3 000 m2 of greenhouses to grow lilies, hyacinth and amaryllis. In those days, there was a really beautiful production from Ile-de-France, the South of France and a bit from Italy, and Holland only supplied bulbs.  I took over the business in 1990, after expanding the surface area by buying four hectares from the Rungis city council (94) in 1988.

How did the business develop ?

My father invested heavily in developing the farm and the profession. He was president of the horticulturists’ trade association (Syndicat des Horticulteurs), vice-president of the regional chamber of agriculture for Ile-de-France and he was awarded the Officier du Mérite Agricole medal.
I developed a production of eremurus, sunflower and hardy plants. Generally speaking, I handle a smaller number of varieties than my father but in greater quantities and I even stopped the lilies. I have specialized more. In fact, it is easier to do large quantities of one variety than small quantities of several varieties. You can rationalize your production and the transport better. I work on about fifteen floral varieties, which represent in total about 650 000 plants/year. I notably produce 100 000 hyacinth, 20 000 amaryllis, 100 000 lily-of-the-valley stems, which I am perhaps the only person in France to propose all year round, 60 000 eremurus stems, 100 000 sunflower stems, without counting the viburnum, arum and hydrangea cut flower productions, which we started three years ago.
95% of my clientele are florist shops and market florists in Ile-de-France and a few in the provinces and 5% are wholesalers to whom I supply eremurus (where I have increased the volumes and varieties) and sunflowers. A certain number of the florist shops supply large brands and top names in the fashion industry like Dior for example. Actually I have done several operations for Dior, in particular the Diorissimo launch in New York and the Christian Dior centenary. Contrary to the Dutch production, I work more with large flowers, like the 2-metre eremurus or the 1.5-metre sunflower, which are quite easy to transport as I am near Rungis.

Unlike the Dutch we don’t compete on the quality, not the price. We will continue developing the business by proposing new productions. To survive in this difficult business, you need enthusiasm, know-how and good health.

What is your opinion of the flower market ?

Generally speaking, the flower market is doing quite well despite the fact that French flowers face tough competition from Holland and other producing countries. In France the profitability is adjusted on quality whereas for the other countries like Holland it is adjusted on the market. As with other products, flowers have entered the globalization era. The investments are increasingly heavy and the profits are barely growing.

What do you think of Rungis Market ?

We’ve been here since it opened in 1969 and the working conditions are not at all comparable with Les Halles market in Paris where my parents used to sell. This market is a huge showcase and it offers an exceptionally broad range. Furthermore, has always cultivated the quality of the products. Also the interest of being at Rungis is also to see how the market is evolving, to produce according to the demand by providing top quality products and freshness and selecting your clientele. Being at Rungis is a serious advantage.