A leader in the plant-based sector in France, the Garden Gourmet brand (Nestlé) intends to continue its contribution to the development of the category in France. Its marketing director, Guillaume Gachet, presents his strategy to achieve this.
La Vie, Heura, HappyVore, Hari&co… In recent years, the meat substitute market has grown significantly in France with the emergence of many new players. And this is reflected in a change in consumer behavior in France: “In 5 years, the overall turnover of the category has increased fivefold and we have gone from 10% to 20% of French people who consume alternative products to meat. Our ambition is to reach 30% within three years and why not 40% by the end of the decade.”confides Guillaume Gachet, marketing director of Garden Gourmet France, the branch of Nestlé specializing in plant-based protein products.
Founded in 2016 (under the name “Herta Le Bon Végétal”), Garden Gourmet (renamed in 2022) is a leader in this emerging sector and its 148 million euros in annual turnover, with a 30.5% market share in value over the last 12 months. The brand has notably managed to distinguish itself by diversifying its offer through new innovations: no fewer than 24 references currently make up its catalog. For example, recipes for a marine-style breaded product and a special barbecue vegetable sausage were launched in April 2024.
And even if standing out remains an important objective in a market facing increased competition, the brand does not necessarily view the emergence of new players in the plant sector with a negative eye: “We do not consider them not like competitorsbut rather as a way for us to help make the category even more visible and accelerate its development”explains Guillaume Gachet.
A partnership with the Olympic Games
To contribute to this common fight and strengthen the democratization of plants in France, Garden Gourmet has begun work to remove the four main barriers in the sector. The first is – obviously – the issue of notoriety. “Many French people are still not aware of our alternative offer to meat. This problem of notoriety represents a real obstacle for the development of our category”recognizes the brand’s marketing director.
To give it more visibility, the plant-based leader has notably strengthened its presence on television, with two speaking engagements in S1 2024 (in January-February and April-May). A sponsorship scheme for the show All in the kitchenhosted by Cyril Lignac and broadcast on M6, was also set up from March to July. The brand even went so far as to conclude a partnership with the biggest sporting competition in the world: the Paris 2024 Olympic Games!
As an official supporter of the event, Garden Gourmet will supply plant-based products to all catering outlets on the Olympic sites. “This partnership with the Olympic Games represents a fantastic showcase for exposing the category and our Garden Gourmet brand to as many people as possible, indicates Guillaume Gachet. It is also an effective way to show many consumers that plant-based products can also be very tasty.”.
Precisely, the second barrier in the sector remains that of taste. The plant-based branch of Nestlé therefore launched, at the beginning of the year, a platform – called Le Vegetal Feel Good – to “to remove this barrier by staging the joyful celebration of people discovering the taste of plant-based products”.
Influencers trapped by the brand
For this same fight, the brand is also investing in social networks: it recently teamed up with chef Guillaume Sanchez to trap influencers – such as Florian OnAir, Benoit Chevalier and Monsieur Pof – by showing their different reactions when they realize that the dishes they have tasted are entirely vegetarian. “This type of initiative allows us to address a younger target audience, showing them that it is difficult to tell the difference between the taste of our meat substitutes and that of animal products.”explains the marketing director.
Then, the category still suffers from a rather negative image. Many French consumers consider that these foods are ultra-processed products and quite harmful to health. According to Guillaume Gachet, this bad perception of the sector is not really founded. “Our entire portfolio is labeled with a Nutri-Score A or B. Our products are balanced, and some of them are composed of only 6 to 7 ingredients. These are still very positive guarantees that help reassure consumers.”he says.
Finally, the relatively high prices charged by plant-based players represent the last obstacle to the development of the sector in France. Here again, efforts have been noted: “Our prices are around 3.30 euros on average. This is quite close to their animal protein-based equivalents.”assures the spokesperson for Garden Gourmet France.
Source: www.e-marketing.fr
