Mericq facility in Donzenac, France. Headquartered in Agen, the group now teaming up with Maison Blanc has a commercial presence in France and Europe, after the acquisition of several companies in Brittany, Normandy, the Mediterranean, and Ireland.
Photo: Mericq.
Mericq and Maison Blanc have announced that they are teaming up. With a common DNA of family-owned companies - Mericq is owned by the Abadie family, and Maison Blanc is run by the Gillardeau family - the two French seafood companies are willing to join forces to innovate and face new challenges.
Thanks to the agreement reached, they will combine their expertise to grow within France, but also to highlight the know-how of two French players in seafood products at the international level. To this end, they will establish synergies between the two companies, taking advantage of each one's strengths, a quid pro quo that will lead them to share catalogs and logistics resources.
For more than 60 years, Mericq has been positioning itself close to the landing points along the Atlantic and Mediterranean coasts. "The seafood world requires real expertise, precision, and rigor. That's why Mericq is exclusively dedicated to seafood products. Our passion for the product and the closeness we maintain with our customers drive us to continuously acquire new skills," pointed out André Abadie, President of the group.
Likewise, Mericq has also developed innovative solutions to offer new forms of proximity to its customers, adapted to current times. One example is its application, which allows professionals to place orders 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, knowing the availability of products in real-time, and even includes a news feed that aims to be the meeting point for seafood lovers.
In this way, the company offers a new shopping experience that redefines the proximity between its teams and its customers. "We aimed to create a media platform blending authenticity and flexibility, allowing visitors to view our latest arrivals and finest pieces in stories and order products they see with just two clicks: a unique remote seafood shopping experience," explained Charlotte Abadie-Fillol, Vice-President of Mericq.
For its part, Maison Blanc maintains close relationships with many customers not only in Paris restaurants but also in the Rungis Market - the largest wholesale supplier to French catering professionals - with a customized product offer. According to the needs of restaurateurs or fishmongers, fish can be filleted, boned, peeled, calibrated, portioned, and packed to order, all done by hand by filleters.
Moreover, since its acquisition in 2019, Maison Blanc has benefited from the expertise of Maison Gillardeau to expand its commercial presence around the world. A single-product company specializing in oysters, over the years Maison Gillardeau has succeeded in positioning its product as an exceptional delicacy for its appearance, taste, and meat yield. The Gillardeau oyster with its famous 'G' engraved on its shell - a unique innovation to control its distribution - has become an emblematic product of the best Parisian tables.
Maison Gillardeau has conquered international markets for several decades, and now its oysters are delivered by Maison Blanc. In addition, its presence at the Rungis International Market (MIN de Rungis) is also a showcase for exports thanks to its global reach, facilitated by its proximity to airports, highways, and logistics platforms, although its influence goes even further. "Rungis is a passion. Daily contact with our customers allows us to meet all their needs. This alliance allows us to ensure the sustainability of our companies to better pass them on to our children," stated Véronique Gillardeau.
The mention of Rungis is not accidental, as this market - which caters to 18 million consumers - represents a strategic place to develop the partnership between two companies such as Mericq, a major player in seafood products in France, and the historic company Maison Blanc, backed by the well-known Gillardeau oysters. The common ambition of both companies is to create a French showcase for premium seafood products for export but also to pool their expertise to offer differentiated solutions to Paris-based customers.
The synergies established between the two companies following the agreement will enable Mericq to realize its ambition to establish itself in Paris and intensify its commercial presence in export. Meanwhile, Maison Blanc will benefit from Mericq's know-how in sourcing, logistics, and e-commerce to offer a wider portfolio of premium seafood products - European blue lobster, Norway lobster, Bouquet shrimp, clams, fish from French auctions - to all its customers in the Paris region and internationally.
"With this union, Gillardeau, primarily a single-product company, partners with a leader in the seafood market to expand its wholesale business at Rungis, improving its competitiveness and the quality of its sourcing," said Thierry Gillardeau, President of Maison Gillardeau. "Maison Blanc and Mericq will pool their logistics resources and product offerings to further enhance customer satisfaction."