Kiriel opens new stores

Compared with its neighbours, France tends to be a country of sparsely populated regions. Although the western European state has a large number of important cities such as Paris, Marseille and Toulouse, it also boasts large swathes of countryside that are only thinly populated. These locations in particular are of interest to retail firms such as Kiriel. Established in 1996, the company, which is based in Aigue­perse in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of western France, is part of the international agro-industrial group Avril. Kiriel offers a franchise system for operators of rural department stores and agri-trade companies.
With over 80 stores, Kiriel is represented not only in purely rural areas but also on the urban fringes. It takes its responsibility as a local supplier seriously, aiming to establish close contacts with its customers and to provide them with specialist advice. The Kiriel stores stock an extensive product assortment ranging from products for the garden and for pets to plants, workwear, products for animal breeding and agricultural goods. The stores have retail areas of up to 1 000 m2 in size. Annual sales total around 33 mio euros, with three to five new stores opening every year.
This was the case last year also. Kiriel Agribricorre, not far from Le Mans in northern France, has been operated by the Pichons as an independent store for many years. Now the business has become affiliated to the Kiriel central office so as to take greater advantage of its service offering. The Pichons' son Julien is set to take the family business into the next generation in the future. Comprising an indoor sales floor of 350 m2, complemented by an outdoor area of 100 m2, the store's range includes products for garden ponds.

Another new addition to the franchise system is the Kiriel store in Vers-en-Montagne in Jura. The Darbon family, which already runs a garden centre in Clairvaux-les-lacs, has opened another store on an area of 200 m2. In addition to garden products and plants, the store sells dog and cat accessories, regional products, work clothing and products for livestock breeding.
A new neighbourhood store under the Kiriel umbrella also opened in Duerne, a community of 830 people, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in…