« Gautier illustrates industrial reconquest »Says Agnès Pannier-Runacher.
This Friday January 22 the Gautier company, manufacturer of furniture made in France, receives a special guest in his factory in Boupère, Vendée. The Minister for Industry is coming to visit the winner of the France Relance plan, who will benefit from aid of € 800,000. ” Industrialists like Gautier are taking their destiny in hand and finding solutions to move forward despite the crisis Says the minister. One could even say: “despite the crises” if one believes the history of the Vendée ETI!
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A made in France company that has been exporting since 1975
Gautier is first and foremost the story of a couple: Annick Soulard and Patrice Gautier. One with an entrepreneurial soul, the other a cabinetmaker … a perfect match! Passionate and determined, the Vendeans settled in a small workshop in Boupère, a town of just over 3,000 inhabitants, and began to write the beginnings of a French success story. In 1960, post-war France was in the midst of a baby boom. The cult of the “child king” is in full swing and radically transforms household consumption patterns. A godsend for the couple who then imagined the first bedrooms for children, allowing the company to become in a few years the leader on the junior market.
But it was 1968 that marked a real turning point for the company. ” At the time my uncle wanted to create a beautiful object, a piece of furniture. He then imagined the first bed-car », Says David Soulard, the current leader of Gautier and nephew of the founders. In 1975, the car bed became a bestseller, allowing the company to go international, especially in the United States where, even today, the Gautier name remains associated with the car bed.
The company reached its peak in the 1980s, until the second oil shock and the arrival of furniture giants such as Ikéa, caused sales to plummet. ” The company was not structured to weather such a storm », Comments David Soulard. ” She filed for bankruptcy twice, in 1983 and 1985 “. Dominique Soulard, Annick’s brother, nevertheless remains in charge of the commercial part.
Reconstruction
Despite a takeover in 1985 by Séribo, the Soulard family still has to weather a new storm with the thanks of Dominique following a capital dispute. But it was without counting on the great loyalty of the company’s employees who then launched a social movement against his dismissal. ” This event allowed us to take our independence », Says David Soulard. In one weekend, Dominique Soulard supported by his four children – including David Soulard – decided to buy the company.
After several years of ” reconstruction and mutation », The company seems to find its cruising speed. 2020 was announced under the best auspices for Gautier thanks to his participation in the Great Exhibition of Made in France presented at the Elysée. A pride for the Vendée company which can thus make its region shine.
Yet in March, the company fell victim to a virus, ” except that this one was not from the medical world but from a computer attack which paralyzed us for 15 days “. Barely out of this episode, Gautier – like all the rest of France – must enter confinement. After sheltering his employees and financially securing his company, David Soulard turns to his network. “ In this kind of moment it is essential not to isolate yourself and succeed in gaining height. I had this chance thanks to Bpifrance, La French Fab, the inter-professional organization, but also the Vendéens who joined forces to stand up as a pack ».
Industrial cabinetmaker
Today Gautier has reopened all its stores and continues to develop. ” More than transformed, I would say that in 20 years the company has changed. The crisis has only accelerated projects already underway “. A pioneer, the ETI was already so by turning before anyone else to megatrends such as digitization, CSR, personalization or even made in France. A “desire to dare” which is also reflected in the multiplication of stores and franchises: more than 120 worldwide, the latest of which has just moved to the heart of Paris in the 15e arrondissement. « With our new Paris-Convention store, we wanted to find proximity to our customers but also to offer them a kind of Lab to support them in the creation of their interior. »Says the entrepreneur.
Interiors that have never been so pampered as in recent months. ” It is the counterbalance of a neglect ” notes David Soulard. “We buy an apartment, often very expensive, so to“ limit breakage ”we recover old furniture which is, for some, ill-suited to our new environment. When you only spend a few hours at home, that does not pose a problem, on the other hand when you are forced to make your living space your office… that’s a whole different story! Chair not comfortable enough, dining room table poorly suited for professional use, lack of storage … findings that led to a peak in consumption in our stores between May and June 2020 ».
Factory of the future delivered in summer 2021, customization and on-demand manufacture of furniture, digitalization of tools … There are many projects for the Vendée company. ” The next big step is to make Gautier a learning company thanks to a major project to support employees in order to change our professions so that they are sustainable. ».
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