The bakery revival

In recent years, the image of the bakery has shifted away from the one it held for so many years. A frenzy of efficiency and overproduction, coupled with the arrival of franchises, have not helped to preserve the tradition of artisan bakeries. " From the 1960s onwards, and especially since the 1980s, customers have been buying the same croissant, the same baguette almost everywhere in France," explains Thomas Teffri-Chambelland, a natural sourdough pioneer who has launched several bakeries, including a gluten-free one in Paris. Between the automation of the process, the use of frozen foods and industrial doughs, the sector needed to get back to basics.

How has bakery reinvented itself? Driven by changing habits and consumer patterns, artisan bakers have rediscovered the pleasure of innovation, while perpetuating the memory and daily gestures of their elders. Proximity to the customer, traceability, natural raw materials, variety of products and offers, digitalization of services and communication are transforming this traditional sector.

I) Bakery gets back to basics

Following the peak of industrial bakeries and their loss of momentum across the country, artisan bakeries have regained their credentials.

• A return to traditional products

The individual, homogenous, consumerist baguette we buy every day has contributed to the rise of industrial bakeries. In recent years, the real battle for artisan bakers has been to demonstrate that, today "in 90% of bakeries, it's the machine that kneads, it's the machine that weighs and it's the machine that shapes the bread: the baker's hand is barely involved, except to press buttons and put the baguette in the oven". In order to move away from the type of bread that is the benchmark for the majority of French people, and to mark the break between industrial and artisan bakeries, most artisan bakers have decided to reconnect with the essentials in their choice of raw materials, as well as in their production methods. Anthony Courteille uses several ancient varieties of wheat, natural sourdough and organic wholemeal flour, to offer a light, round bread with no acidity. Promulgating the flavors of yesteryear and natural ingredients is the artisan baker's challenge: "so my bread will have its own personality, a signature that won't necessarily be the same as another baker's."[caption id="attachment_10893" align="aligncenter" width="600"]

Le Sain[/caption]There's no good bread without good flour. Opting for flours made from local peasant cereals, rescued from the industrialization of agriculture, results in breads that are easier to digest, with a distinctive taste. Their gluten content and glycemic index remain lower. On the other hand, they require a specific, artisanal approach: handling a wooden beech kneading trough, elaborating a natural leaven from A to Z, long fermentation times. In addition to reconnecting with the craft of the artisan and using natural, authentic products, the bakery industry has taken on board the ecological transition that is now an integral part of the French landscape. Year after year, the green and locavore trend continues to gain ground as consumer habits evolve towards healthier, more eco-responsible eating. Bakeries are well aware of this, and are not hesitating to capitalize on it.

• A locavore trend

As in the restaurant business, preparation methods and confectionery practices are changing in the bakery sector. The popularity of the Paul and Brioche Dorée brands, offering fast, consistent service, is waning. Instead, we're seeing the emergence of bakeries with local, eco-responsible customs and practices. According to Vincent Biron, the young entrepreneur who launched the PainPan bakery with Rémi Cerelosa, the secret to rediscovering true flavors lies in using natural products. The quality of the flour makes it easy to digest for people with gluten intolerance. Personal convictions, regulatory constraints and customer awareness of ecological issues are all reinforcing the underlying green trend. According to Vincent "our generation is the one that has rediscovered the local and the healthy".a generation attentive to the origin of raw materials and sharing eco-responsible values. This altruistic philosophy is expressed as much by the baker's proximity to his customers, as by the preparation of a primary foodstuff, inseparable from the pleasures of the table and the communion of the meal. [caption id="attachment_10891" align="aligncenter" width="600"]

© PainPan[/caption]The Chambelland bakery, has taken up the challenge of opening its bakery to the public and rediscovering the virtues of old-fashioned bread. Nathaniel Doboin and Thomas Teffri-Chambelland bake and pastry exclusive recipes based on rice flour and other naturally gluten-free cereals (milled at the Chambelland mill), offering a wide variety of breads, from wholemeal to rye pie and seasonal breads. The artisan must position himself as a professional and take up the mantle in a troubled environment, in order to reassure consumers and provide them with concrete, precise answers to the many aspects of the profession that have been called into question by public opinion: quality of flours, wheat and gluten, homemade products, selection of raw materials... while concentrating his efforts at the point of sale.Moulin des GauthiersMoulin des Gauthiers, the last remaining artisan miller in the Paris region, offers a range of organic and conventional cereal flours (wheat, spelt, rye, oats, corn, small spelt, buckwheat) and works with various bakeries in the Paris region to maintain ancestral traditions. Bruno Mondet is part of this locavore trend with his bakery Épis et Painslocated in the Chavenay business park. With the help of Yvelines farmers, the miller-baker has succeeded in bringing bread back to a commune without a bakery. Bruno keeps kneading to a minimum, always respecting the raw material, and offers quality homemade bread! [caption id="attachment_10899" align="alignnone" width="1024"]

Epis et Pains[/caption]This back-to-basics approach works commercially, thanks to the underlying locavore trend that is becoming part of the French landscape. Locavore and eco-responsibility, as promoted on social media, are driving new bakeries to return to the very roots of production and manufacturing. In just a few months, Circus Bakery, run by the Fragments team, has become the must-visit bakery in Paris's 5th arrondissement. Located on rue Galande, Circus Bakery offers delicious cinnamon rolls, a range of homemade sourdough breads and coffee roasted by Hexagone.[caption id="attachment_10902" align="alignnone" width="1202"]

Circus Bakery[/caption]Behind the wooden facade reminiscent of bakeries of yesteryear, Circus Bakery applies polished storytelling on social media, and particularly on Instagram. Their mastery of communication, from the dough to the final product, including pre-baking shaping, has enabled them to gather a community of gourmands, which today extends to over 45k.

II) Mastering storytelling and social media, the new weapon for success?

From a greener approach to highly sophisticated communication, bakeries are reinventing themselves. Chefs are revamping their image, thanks to social media, to satisfy as many people as possible.

• Top chefs democratize luxury bakery

Communicating in the press or on social media is becoming a major asset for renowned chefs. Like Cédric Grolet, best pastry chef in the world 2018 and head pastry chef at the Meurice Hotel, who opened his own pastry-bakery. In no time at all, his store became the most bankable sweet phenomenon in Paris. On Instagram, he posts the 2.0 showcase of his fruit collection, his pains au chocolat, croissants and traditional sandwiches. Cédric Grolet's motto is: "The good keeps you coming, the beautiful keeps you coming". A true motto, since more than 150,000 people follow him on social media and long queues form on the sidewalk in front of the store every day. Cédric Grolet's challenge extends not only to creating a real bond with his community, but also to making his products, served in limited quantities and made from high-quality ingredients - flour from Moulins d'Antoine, made-to-order chocolate and Ducasse coffee - accessible. Whether through its particularly Instagrammable creations or its prices, which remain high but affordable.[caption id="attachment_10903" align="alignnone" width="1188"]

Cédric Grolet[/caption]Thierry Marx, Michelin-starred chef, needs no introduction. With the creation of his bakery chain Thierry Marx Bakery, he has created a link between two professions, united around bread! The chef uses the mix of luxury and street food to promote his products and his image. In each of his bakeries, Thierry Marx offers a multi-influenced street food experience that restores bread in all its forms to its former glory.[caption id="attachment_10904" align="aligncenter" width="1080"]

Thierry Marx [/caption]The "La Loyale" baguette and the "Breadmaki", two flagship products, symbolize the celebration of bread in its most traditional and most modern form. More than just a bakery, each boutique offers a complete service: from breakfast to lunch, brunch and aperitifs. According to Thierry Marx, "cuisine is something to look at, meditate on and eat". With over 280,000 followers, Thierry Marx has successfully marketed his image and that of his bakery chain. The advent of social media, in particular Instagram, enables chefs to take advantage of a large and diverse community. With carefully crafted storytelling, bakers can showcase their expertise and creations, products of undeniable success.Year after year, social media have pushed consumption patterns to evolve. In the bakery and patisserie sector, some have opted for the single-product, hypersegmented approach. This trend is intensifying as consumers turn away from supermarkets to repopulate artisanal shops.

• Single-concept bakeries are emerging thanks to social media

These days, it makes sense to go to a boutique specializing in a single product. In Paris and other major cities, increasing competition is forcing retailers to differentiate themselves. To achieve this, some bakeries offer one product in a multitude of recipes. Thanks to this hypersegmentation, the brand positions itself as an expert on a given product and succeeds in meeting its public thanks to the creativity it deploys in the culinary recipes it offers. Both original and qualitative, the single-product concept, which appeared on the French market a few years ago, covers both savoury and sweet products. On the sweet side, it gives pride of place to pastry-chocolate-makers who reinvent the great classics of French pastry-making. Like the aptly named Éclair de génie, launched in 2012, which offers all kinds of variations on the éclair: from classic chocolate flavors to fruity seasonal ones. Today, Christophe Adam 's luxury patisserie has almost thirty outlets worldwide (Paris, Georgia, Japan, China, Qatar). This craze for mono-products is fully expressed in the world of patisserie. Babka Zana, a Levantine bakery in the 9th arrondissement, offers the famous and delicious chocolate braided brioche. Sarah and Emmanuel Murat, the couple who founded the company, offer babka in four flavors and several forms. Another way of satisfying their customers' every need.[caption id="attachment_10894" align="aligncenter" width="770"]

Babka Zana[/caption]These single-product bakeries also design ephemeral collections, create events or adapt their recipes to seasonal products to avoid customer fatigue. In this way, the mono-product becomes a concept that doesn't stand still, but is conducive to creativity, much to the delight of social media. L'atelier Popelini, the first choux showcase in Paris, offers a permanent palette of twenty-nine different colors and flavors, including six ephemeral offerings. Lauren Koumetz, head of the house, has reinvented this great classic.[caption id="attachment_10892" align="aligncenter" width="1172"]

Popelini[/caption]For consumers, single-product brands are becoming a sign of confidence, offering greater ease of choice. Some of these successful bakeries extend the pleasure of their customers by dedicating a tasting area within their store. Profiterole Chérie, for example, offers a meal menu to eat in or take away. Patissier Philippe Urraca, president of the Meilleurs Ouvriers de France pastry-makers' association, has designed profiteroles that are not only sweet but also savoury, so that his customers can enjoy a meal at lunchtime or in the evening. These creations are made on site and assembled to order. The store specializing in profiteroles takes advantage of this proximity to develop corners for special events. Available in a wide range of sweet and savoury, cold and hot formats, the single product covers a variety of consumption moments and allows for evolution to avoid consumer fatigue. This is an extremely effective vector of communication and press, particularly online, where articles flock to the opening of each new specialized establishment. With more and more emphasis on seasonal ingredients and smaller menus, the concept of single-product outlets is meeting a new demand. What could be quicker and more reassuring than to turn to a store that specializes in a particular craving?

• The lifestyle bakery: the real winner

Imposing one's own storytelling, sharing one's creations, no matter how graceful, on social media and somehow becoming part of the bakery landscape is not common. So-called lifestylebakeries are taking advantage of the rise of #food on Instagram and using it to good effect to develop their notoriety. Located in the 11th arrondissement, French Bastards represents the new bakery-pastry shop, both traditional and contemporary. The menu features rustic breads sourced from organic flours, Instagrammable viennoiseries and sandwiches. Created by two former business school graduates and a baker-patissier, this new-generation chain has made a name for itself in the industry thanks to its know-how and polished communication. Listed in various directories, French Bastards responds to its customers' new consumption patterns by being available on the Deliveroo delivery platform. A godsend for those who love breakfast in bed! [caption id="attachment_10900" align="aligncenter" width="1167"]

© The French Bastards[/caption]Following their respective professional experiences Victoria Effantin and Cécile Khayat opened Mamiche, an artisan bakery in the 9th arrondissement. "We started from the observation that many inventive projects were emerging in the restaurant sector, but very few in the bakery sector."explains Victoria Effantin. They then applied their marketing and communications know-how: branding, brand image, type of business, listing of products to be created and sold...[caption id="attachment_10901" align="aligncenter" width="600"]

Mamiche[/caption]"80% of bakeries sell frozen products. So when we said we wanted to do everything in-house, they didn't believe us." says Cécile Khayat. Being transparent, playing on the memorable character of the brand and the experience offered to consumers (they offer you, and without any embarrassment, to "taste these big loaves"), all in a joyful atmosphere, has enabled Mamiche to shake up the codes of the bakery-pastry shop and respect the flavor of tradition!

One bakery and 18 employees later, the main challenge of expanding while continuing to do everything by hand has been met! In just two years, this neighborhood bakery has become one of the best in Paris. Straight out of the Ferrandi French School of Gastronomy and Hotel Management, Jean-François Bandet and Magali Szekula, the two behind the "creative" bakery BO&MIE, have the same vision of the business. Known for offering breads made exclusively with natural sourdough, and traditional pastries and viennoiseries with a high-end twist, BO&MIE has become a veritable benchmark in Paris, thanks to the hard work and talent of its bakers, pastry chefs and tourtiers! Quality flours from local producers, products made and baked on site, the bakery-pâtisserie is constantly featured in the Top articles of the food lifestyle media, easily boosting its reputation with French and foreign customers alike. [caption id="attachment_10895" align="aligncenter" width="1418"]

© BO&MIE[/caption]This renewal inspired by these new-generation bakeries places tradition at the heart of their strategy. They have activated the three complementary forms of digital communication - local referencing, social media, press relations and influencers - to enhance their reputation, attract new customers and become a favored destination.B.O.U.LO.M, the "bakery where you eat", known in particular for its brunch and breakfast offerings, has mastered its communication to perfection on its social media. Julien Duboué has gone beyond the bakery concept, transforming his establishment into a veritable restaurant, and has succeeded in merging several modes of consumption. [caption id="attachment_10898" align="aligncenter" width="1176"]

© B.O.U.L.O.M[/caption]

III) From bakery to restaurant, just one step?

As consumer habits evolve, so do bakeries. Today, in some bakeries, you can buy a baguette and eat a meal at the same time. With the right communication around these offers, the concept is becoming increasingly popular.

• The brunch opportunity

A combination of breakfast foods (pastries, pancakes, hot drinks, fruit juices, etc.) and a main course (often based around eggs) is emerging as the new weekly rendezvous for many French people. Brunch is opening up opportunities for many restaurants. Whether it's a trend or a new consumer habit, the development of the savoury and Instagrammable "snack" range is enabling restaurants to attract outside customers and boost the reputation of their restaurant offering. Located in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, Olivier Stehly, a renowned pastry chef, has opened his boutique so that his customers can enjoy a quality tea time and brunch. Accompanied on social media, the pastry chef attracts over 45,000 guests. [caption id="attachment_10890" align="aligncenter" width="585"]

Olivierstehly[/caption]Bontemps, a pastry shop with a retro aesthetic specializing in shortbread and artisanal delicacies, now offers a gourmet menu perfectly balanced between savory and sweet. Here, the chef reveals his cooking skills. With the opening of a tea room behind the patisserie, and three formulas, including one for children, Bontemps attracts tourists from the Marais as well as families from the 1st arrondissement. [caption id="attachment_10896" align="aligncenter" width="747"]

© Oubruncher[/caption]

• The pastry opportunity:

In addition to bread recipes (+ 625% searches on Google since March 8, 2020) or sourdough: the French are spending more and more time on Instagram Food accounts in general. A real bond has, over time, been forged between influencers and bakeries in the broadest sense. Many are diversifying to attract a wider customer base, with pastry shops springing up inside bakeries themselves. Bakery chain Paris & Co has collaborated with influencer dessert_parisian. This content creator and skilled pastry chef generates an audience of 26.5k subscribers and food lovers. He recently created a vanilla flan, "flan parisian", available exclusively in Paris & Co bakeries!

French Bastards has created a series of pastries in collaboration with influencer Moulaye, a student at the Ferrandi school. On this occasion, the self-taught artist proposed two capsule creations blending his universe with that of the "Bastards": the lemon buckwheat roll and the Black & Yellow tart!

Combining bakery and patisserie represents an interesting way of collaborating with influencers and benefiting from their notoriety to maximize your reputation and expand your customer base. The existing correlation between the world of bakery and patisserie takes on even more meaning with the foodosphere present on social media.

In a nutshell,

Bakeries are reconnecting with the traditions and skills of yesteryear. More local, artisanal and transparent, French bakeries have reinvented themselves with sharp storytelling. Thanks to social media and the whole food world that goes with it, renowned chefs are democratizing their creations. Has the new-generation bakery become the ultimate Eldorado for top pastry chefs and cooks, adapting to the latest consumer trends - brunch, savoury offerings and tea rooms?