Established in 1965 by Laurent Merlino, the model for the French floristry business has remained largely unchanged in spite of changing markets; it still aims to offer “the best flowers at the best prices”. Now it has opened a new store in London’s South Kensington, and wants to revolutionise the way we buy flowers.
French entrepreneur David Belhassen is leading the company’s plans to take over the high street. The owner of a private equity firm was previously involved with the development of Paul Bakeries, another French retailer in the UK. This company started out with two stores two years ago; now there are 25 bakeries in the UK. A similar model of expansion is now being adapted for Monceau Fleurs.
David Belhassen explains. “We bought the know-how and the brand for the UK and control the capital of this operation. The French parent company is a minority partner in the business.” The plan is to open two or three Monceau Fleurs shops over the next year or so before growing very rapidly across the country. The company already has stores in a number of other countries, including Japan, Portugal and Luxembourg. Going forward there are plans to look at opportunities in large flower buying countries such as Germany.
This expansion strategy is currently being undertaken across France too, where there are currently 140 outlets bringing in a turnover of around 100 million. The company’s strategy is to open another 140 shops within the next three years.
The market for flowers in the UK, according to Mr Belhassen is worth €3.5 billion, in contrast to the €2.5 billion market in France. He also explains that there were other reasons behind the move to UK. He says, “quite specifically, 50 percent or more of the flower market in the UK is...
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