ROGER PRADIER: a centenary company that looks to the future

The history of the Roger Pradier company begins in 1910. That year, Jean Pradier, tinsmith and galvanizer, moved to Paris to a workshop in the 20th arrondissement, in Belleville. In 1970, the Jean Pradier & Sons factory moved to Saint-Maur, near Châteauroux in the Indre. In 1996 the company became Éclairage Roger Pradier. Today, the Roger Pradier brand specializes in outdoor lighting and belongs to the Rivalen group chaired by Tristan De Witte. In Châteauroux, the headquarters and factory bring together 57 employees, while a showroom and office were opened in 2018 on rue Lamartine, in the 9th arrondissement of Paris.

You arrived at Roger Pradier’s general management in 2021, which is about a year ago. In what context did you assume your duties?
Jean-Michel Vergain – I have 22 years of professional experience, with the first part of my career spent in large international groups specialized in the field of fashion accessories, Louis Vuitton, Lacoste, Ralph Lauren, as marketing director or commercial director. I have spent the last ten years in smaller structures, SMEs, in general management or profit center management positions. In 2021 I followed training for corporate takeovers with the aim of joining a family-sized group and it was in this context that I met Tristan De Witte, president of the Rivalen group, who was looking for a general manager for Roger Pradier. I was seduced by both Tristan De Witte’s vision and values ​​and Roger Pradier’s project. It is a centuries-old brand, with true craftsmanship and industrial excellence, with the EPV (Living Heritage Company) label. Its production tool covers the entire value chain, from art direction to marketing, including the control of the entire production chain and multiple development perspectives. This is what motivated my desire to join Roger Pradier, both for the brand project and for the context Rivalen, an investor-architect group that continues to grow with the acquisition of new companies and synergies both industrial, commercial and marketing. I find it fantastic to be able to place Roger Pradier’s project in such a context, with a vision and means that allow it to develop in the most qualitative way possible.

How is the brand evolving today?
Jean-Michel Vergain – In 2021, Roger Pradier reached 10.5 million euros in turnover. We ship around 60,000 products a year and our catalog includes 7,000 references and 55 collections. We also offer the possibility of making custom-made products or of making what we call half sizes, that is to say with small modifications on an existing model. The acquisition of Roger Pradier by the Rivalen group has given another vision and new resources to the brand and given it new impetus: what defines it, what characterizes it? What is the imagination of the brand? All a reflection focused on the organization of the company at all levels: strengthening of the commercial and administrative teams and also of the skills for a better diffusion of the brand. With Stéphane Joyeux, artistic director of the brand for more than 20 years, we have also developed collaborations with external designers. When I arrived at Roger Pradier, I spoke with employees to share their vision of the company, to get to know each other, to capitalize on the human factor. With Roger Pradier’s ambition and drive, the brand develops year after year, experiences strong growth and, thanks to the optimization of its organization, can respond to society’s challenges with new projects.

By giving it another vision and new resources, the Rivalen group has given new impetus to the Roger Pradier brand” Jean-Michel Vergain, General Manager of Roger Pradier

Can you tell us about these projects?
Jean-Michel Vergain – We have undertaken the expansion of the plant which will increase from 3,500 m² to 6,000 m²: it will be delivered in February 2023, and from August 2023 everything will be operational, including with a new zero waste surface treatment chain. This investment aims to meet the needs of Roger Pradier in view of his growth in France and internationally. This also aims, within the framework of the deployment of the Rivalen group and the synergies created between the different companies, to potentially be able to collaborate on an industrial level and supply the other companies of the group according to their needs, and why not also become a sub-sale for other brands, both in lighting and in other product categories, as long as they are metal workings. Our know-how and expertise allow us to offer a 25-year anti-corrosion guarantee for all aluminum products, knowing that 95% of our offer is made from aluminum and that aluminum is recyclable to eternal life. The teams also worked hard to obtain ISO 9001 certification, which defines the criteria applicable to a quality management system. We just received a positive review. Furthermore, a good number of collections are being converted to the UL standard – an international mark which guarantees the conformity of a product with the quality and safety requirements of the UL standard applicable in the United States and Canada; UL standards generally address fire and electrical hazards. This certification will help us a lot in our development in the United States where we have just opened a branch.
At the same time, we remain very attached to the French market and have even created an “e-commerce” platform to get closer to our partners. We launched this project last September. If we are experiencing such great growth today, it is largely thanks to our partner stores that represent the brand. With this ecosystem in mind, we have set up a click and collect system. The final consumer orders the Roger Pradier product on the e-commerce site but it is not delivered: he must go to a Roger Pradier partner store to collect his product. It’s a way to help our partners and increase their participation rate.

The Rivalen group recently went “business on a mission”. Concretely, how does this translate for the various companies that make it up?
Jean-Michel Vergain – Roger Pradier, Sécurlite, Brossier Saderne and Luzeva must set goals with a social and environmental dimension; for example, we will install photovoltaic panels on the roof of the factory. We are thinking of an eco-design model: our designer is ready to modify the proportions of the products to limit waste in terms of the materials used. Roger Pradier is 112 years old and looks to the future: all investments and projects in progress aim to ensure the development and growth of the brand both nationally and internationally. We therefore wish to meet the challenges of today and tomorrow while maintaining our centuries-old know-how and promoting the development of the skills of our teams.

Interview by Isabelle Arnaud