The FINANCIAL — Entrée, the French bakery chain in Tbilisi, has made an additional investment equal to 160,000 GEL by opening a new Entrée shop in Bagebi district, Tbilisi.
This is the first of the chain’s Mini Entrée shop formats that the company was intending to open in 2011.
The Entrée team spent a significant amount of time with Georgian designers deciding on the design of the shop.
“We decided to open a new shop because people love Entrée, this little French island in Tbilisi,” Jean Michel Charles, Partner of Entrée, told The FINANCIAL. “We selected the location for practical reasons. There are business stops, schools and a fitness clubs near our shop. Residents of Bagebi are our customers. As well as them, residents of Tskneti and Kaklebi now have a shop on the way as they drive home. The format is very small. Only 7-8 people can fit at one and the same time but our take-away service is very popular. I can proudly say that only 3 weeks have passed since the new shop opened, but already it has proved to be very successful.”
“We have created a unique concept, one which would attract attention and become popular in any European city,” said Jean Michel Charles. “We are proud of both the interior and exterior of the cafe, the quality of products and the service.”
Entrée is a totally French bakery chain born in Tbilisi in December 2008. The coffee bars of Entrée are an original concept having a solid image of a smoke and alcohol-free establishment with free Wi-Fi for the whole family to enjoy. It caters also to business people for their meetings, young people meeting friends and even romantic meetings, all due to its high international standards. The cafes are smoke-free places, but each of them have outdoor terraces where smokers can have a cigarette.
“Concepts like Entrée are popular in many countries,” Mr. Charles said. “We are already sure that such a format works very well in Georgia too. I think that it’s time for other Caucasian countries to have Entrée shops. We have already had negotiations about this with Baku, Yerevan and Kiev.”
Entrée products are made using mostly French ingredients prepared by French bakers and confectioners. The cafes open at 8 A.M., which is very unusual for Tbilisi. The concept of a breakfast service isn’t much developed in Tbilisi yet. Entrée is one of the exceptions to offer such a service. The cafes have many customers in the morning, those having breakfast in the establishment or taking hot coffee and some confectionary away with them. According to Mr. Charles the breakfast service is quite popular, especially with the foreigners living in Tbilisi.
Entrée has its own take-out packaging for all products including hot drinks, soups and salads which allow you to taste all of Entrée’s delicious and healthy products anywhere: at home, at a picnic, in the office as well as at the Entree coffee bar.
“Entrée has its loyal everyday clients and this results in the variety of products that the cafes offer. People can’t eat the same thing every day. So we pay much attention to the variety of products available. We follow world culinary tendencies. Everything new in the culinary world we try to offer at Entrée as well. We have questionnaires which our clients fill out. We take note of each suggestion and complaint. We even add some products according to client’s wishes,” he explained.
“The prices at our cafes aren’t low, as quality always has to be corresponding to price. If there is no accordance between price and quality, it will very much influence sales,” Mr. Charles said. “At the moment our clients are confident that they are paying money for their health and a healthy lifestyle. If that changes, we’ll lose many of them a week.”
All products at Entrée are made with natural ingredients, without any chemical substances. Bakers don’t use artificial yeast. Entrée’s bread contains only fruit bacteria instead of artificial yeasts.
“Our different types of bread are the most popular products at our cafes, as they are acceptable for all types of clients. People who want to have a slim figure, who have problems with their stomach or intestines, even those with diabetes can eat our bread without any problem,” he stated.
At present the Entrée chain employs up to 100 individuals.
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