FRANCINE

THE BRAND

Francine is the ‘Hovis’ of France. In fact, in some ways Francine is even bigger in France than Hovis is in the UK. Francine is not only the brand leader in home bakery in France but it also has a significant presence in the Ready To Bake Sector. In addition, their flour is sold to a great number of business customers, leading restaurants such as Claridges and the Ritz in the UK.

THE BACKGROUND

Francine asked Rivermill to help develop a home-baking range, design the range and develop the sell-in to UK multiples. As part of our category study it became apparent that the quality of the French range – it’s heritage and the positioning of French bread and baking in the consumers mind – presented a good opportunity.

THE RESULTS

The range was first introduced into the UK in 2008. Since then the range has been developed to incorporate new packaging and new products. The range is currently in Waitrose.

THE CLIENT SAID ...

''We have developed a solid base in Waitrose with Rivermill - the task is now to see the brand extend further into other retailers'' Rivermill have a very simple business model and communicate well with our team in France''