Stylish French Living PRESS KIT french manufacturer
AN INTERNATIONAL GROUP with family values Gautier PREFERS FRENCH WOOD Gautier, a quality brand for French-crafted furniture AN INTERNATIONAL MADE IN FRANCE NETWORK A FRENCH FRANCHISE: MADE IN VENDÉE innovation THE COMPANY S DRIVING FORCE THE Lab : MAKING THE MOST OF OUR EMPLOYEES SKILLS
AN INTERNATIONAL GROUP with family values! Founded in 1960, Gautier is based in The Vendée, where the company chose to continue manufacturing its stylish, contemporary furniture. Thanks to a family that is passionate about entrepreneurship and taking on challenges as well as to tightlyknit, highly efficient teams, Gautier s success has spread in France and across the globe. The Soulard family at the helm of the Gautier group. Left to right: Dominique and Ginette Soulard and their 4 children Valérie Soulard-Brin, Arnaud Soulard, Hervé Soulard and David Soulard. Heading up the company are Dominique and David Soulard in their capacities as CEO and Managing Director, respectively. They ensure the company s traditional expertise lives on and are guardians of the values the company has been upholding since it was founded: humility, harmony and honesty. Despite its international presence, the Gautier Group has continued to manufacture in France.. Furniture that is made in France: Gautier has mastered the art of furniture-making. At a time when many businesses are shifting their production overseas, Gautier is taking a step in the opposite direction by ensuring that its raw materials - wood - is sourced in France. This decision is in line with the Group s underlying values. It prioritises local employment by employing OVER 950 individuals across its 3 manufacturing sites in the Vendée region. Its manufacturing expertise is handed down generation after generation, while remaining flexible in the face of new market trends. OVER 8 000 FURNITURE ITEMS leave our factories every day and are despatched to all four corners of the globe.
GAUTIER PREFERS FRENCH WOOD! In November 2012 Gautier was awarded PEFC certification, which promotes the traceability of wood and sustainable forestry management. This recognises the company s long-standing commitment to the environment and to manufacturing in France. At a time when many businesses are shifting their production overseas, Gautier is taking a step in the opposite direction by ensuring that its raw materials - wood - are sourced in France. This decision is in line with the Group s underlying values. CERTIFIED PRODUCT MAN Responsible consumer SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT Everyday materials (paper, furniture, heating) FOREST WOOD The lungs of our planet Wood sourced from the Landes region (France) CHAIN OF CUSTODY FROM SUSTAINABLY MANAGED REGIONAL FORESTS, TO FURNITURE THAT IS MADE IN FRANCE! Gautier France has held ISO 14001 certification for many years and its products bear the NF Environnement eco-label, a sign of its commitment to ecodesign. The company is committed to a global process for the protection of people and the environment. Gautier has mastered the art of furniture-making. Its particle board is manufactured inhouse and the French wood used in its designs comes from sustainably managed forests within 300 km of its factories. Deforestation has a worrying impact on the delicate balance of our natural surroundings (floods, landslides, endangered species). In addition, forests play an important role in effectively fighting global warming. The Gautier Group helps protect forests by manufacturing its furniture from wood sourced in sustainably managed forests or from recycled scrap wood. + FOCUS on the PEFC label: This programme for the endorsement of forest certification promotes sustainable forest management. Today, PEFC France represents 5 million hectares of public and private certified forest. PEFC France is comprised of 52,000 forest owners and 2500 companies in the wood sector. Together, they ensure consumers benefit from a PEFC-certified product, guaranteed to be sourced from a sustainably managed forest.
A QUALITY BRAND for French-crafted furniture! 55 years ago, Gautier dreamt up its very first kids bedrooms infused with visionary flair. Since then, over 5 million children and teenagers have slept in a Gautier bed. Today, the company offers furniture for every room in your house : living rooms, dining rooms, adults bedrooms, kids rooms, walk-in closets, storage units and much more. Gautier makes life that little bit easier by offering simple, contemporary furniture that combines warmth, harmony, pleasure and comfort! Boasting unique expertise, the Gautier brand stands out thanks to its inhouse design team who steadily craft the brand s story day after day through their pioneering designs and original concepts that fit right in with your living spaces. The team brings together 5 designers, each of whom has his or her own unique vision of the world, experience and artistic inclination. They share a single aim: to reinvent the interior design and the living spaces of both today and tomorrow, so that every day spent in your home is a moment of pure joy. Today, the Gautier network comprises over 100 stores in France and abroad. As real spaces for any advice you might need, our stores welcome you to a warm, friendly environment where designing your interior space is easy and a source of immense pleasure. HONOURING FRENCH DESIGN! The 164 pages of the Gautier catalogue pay homage to French design, manufacturing and innovation. The catalogue is available from all Gautier stores in France and abroad and can be downloaded at WWW.GAUTIER.FR Gautier creates furniture with passion and creativity, making life even more beautiful than it already is.
AN INTERNATIONAL MADE IN FRANCE NETWORK GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION, A UNIVERSAL BRAND Gautier s French savoir-faire is exported to 65 countries around the world and foreign consumers love it! The Gautier brand is an ambassador for French elegance. It symbolises a lifestyle and stands for the manufacture of top-quality products. GAUTIER STORES AROUND THE WORLD... Qatar Algeria Gautier s strategy is to focus on emerging markets. Central Asia, South- East Asia, sub-saharan Africa, Latin America and the Gulf States all reflect the ambitions of this international group. The keys to the success of its business model are time to market and maintaining its production in France. For maximum flexibility, manufacturing is carried out at 3 sites in the Vendée region. Consumers in other countries are now travelling more frequently and are keen to buy the latest European designs. Valérie Brin, Gautier s export manager, says: «export accounts for almost 30% of the group s operations». Customers are looking for the expertise and French standards of excellence that have been important to Gautier ever since its foundation. We do not create special export ranges. Customers around the world are attracted by the style and elegance of French furniture, by stylish French living. Canada Bulgaria
A FRENCH FRANCHISE: MADE IN VENDÉE A DYNAMIC, ATTRACTIVE NATIONAL NETWORK Since 2005, Gautier has built up a network of over 55 stores in France, so customers do not have to travel far to find top quality and design. Founded in the Vendée region of France in 1960, Gautier has stayed true to its roots. It is a major economic player in a region that is proud of its manufacturing expertise and capacity for innovation. Throughout the ups and downs of its history, the company has learned the importance of staying competitive in a furniture market that is under pressure. Gautier store at S t Brieuc The network of Gautier stores in France Customers and franchisees alike are attracted by the company s unique, complete product range and support its concept and values. With their stores, Gautier s franchisees provide a harmonious, relaxed space and work hard to ensure their customers are totally happy! They provide truly personalised advice on interior design. Buying furniture requires a great deal of thought, so it is important to help customers to select the items that are right for their available space, colour schemes and layout. Every day our franchisees go the extra mile, sharing their expertise and building trust with their customers.
INNOVATION THE COMPANY S DRIVING FORCE Nowadays successful companies have to be creative and agile, because the world is constantly changing! In an uncertain market, the furniture sector still suffers from its image as a traditional industry with little capacity for innovation. Our recipe for success? Gautier is a family-run company with strong regional roots and a strategy that focuses on innovation. Gautier is constantly evolving and is always one step ahead. FLEX, GAUTIER s new production tool Thierry Bouet ( Exposition Des Usines et des Hommes 2015 ) Gautier strengthened its manufacturing facilities IN ORDER TO KEEP ITS PRODUCTION IN FRANCE In 2015 Gautier strengthened its manufacturing facilities by investing 10 million euros in its Boupère production site. 7.5 million of this was earmarked for the new FLEX manufacturing process. This investment is part of a modernisation plan at the production site, which was originally designed for mass production. This new technology will allow Gautier to remain competitive and continue manufacturing in France. FLEX is part of the rapid development of the Gautier brand via its network of more than 100 retail franchises in France and around the world.
THE LAB : MAKING THE MOST OF OUR EMPLOYEES SKILLS COLLABORATIVE PROCESS OF INNOVATION In 2014 Gautier set up an effective process via the «Yammer» tool. This stimulates ideas for new products, services and improving customer relations. The focus is on innovation thanks to a collaborative procedure which puts employees at the heart of its projects. These are currently being tested in our Gautier lab: a real laboratory on our Boupère site. The Gautier Lab tests out ideas for creating the furniture of tomorrow. Design projects are put into practice in a prototype studio. If the results are good, the product is developed and put on the market. In June 2014 the group opened a new textiles studio - this also came out of the ideas laboratory! This project is the result of collaborative innovation that began with the creation of the Premium collection. Bedrooms can now be personalised with 500 possible combinations of textiles and colours. Everyone supported the possibility of integrating this new service internally. Expert craftmanship at the service of industry: a textiles studio at the heart of Gautier s factories Production began in June 2014 and the studio employs 10 staff, including 4 seamstresses and 2 upholsterers. It is currently setting up and preparing for its first orders. We called on one of our employees who had a passion for sewing to test out this project in the lab. Our aim was to benefit from our employees skills and interests, including those that they do not use in their jobs. It is a way of making the most of our people and their skills. Initial prototypes were successfully produced in the laboratory and the decision was made to set up a textiles studio. THE ADVENTURE HAS STARTED!
MEMO KEY FIGURES 55 YEARs of expertise in creating furniture for living. OVER 100 Gautier stores in France and across the world. 3 manufacturing sites in Vendée (France): Le Boupère, Chantonnay et Saint Prouant. 140 millions turnover. 100 % of production is guaranteed by our factories in the Vendee region. 950 employees. + 10 % export growth the last few years. 8 000 FURNITURE ITEMS leave Gautier s factories every day to be despatched to all four corners of the globe. First FRENCH furniture company to obtain triple certification (ISO 9001 in 1991, ISO 14001 in 2006, OHSAS 18001 in 2007). Follow Gautier on Twitter! @GautierFrance @DavidSoulard Contact médias : Laëtitia Tatard / T. 02 53 35 50 20 Mail : lt@monet-rp.com / WWW.MONET-RP.COM