We were recently invited to Paris for an immersion week with our new (and quite clearly, fantastic) client, St Pierre. St Pierre are the bakery brand with the most amazing brioche, if you haven’t tried it yet you really should.
Anyway, Paris! It was a really amazing week. The St Pierre team had planned it perfectly, the attention to detail on their agenda was astonishing, from morning to night our days were jam-packed with inspiring, thought-provoking and productive activities. Including workshops, a tour of Paris, three course meals (lunch and dinner) and of course an evening riverboat tour.
St Pierre is a global brand and in attendance was a very much International team, with representatives from their UK, USA and French team members and agency partners. This was a chance for us all to connect, learn together, workshop together and come away with a new “one team” approach to the Marketing and Comms for the St Pierre brand.
I think I can speak for everyone when I say that it was a great week for everyone involved. And in an attempt to make this a somewhat succinct blog read – here are my five key takeaways from the trip.
Attention to detail is key
If there is one thing Parisians excel at, it’s attention to detail. And this can be seen especially through the incredible boulangeries, patisseries and speciality food shops that are healthily scattered throughout the city. Everything is delicious but everything is also beautiful, down to the tiniest, minute detail. It was mind blowing.
Art is ever-present and constantly evolving
Most people are aware that Paris is a city synonymous with art. You have the history of artistic greats like Picasso and Salvador Dali taking residence Paris (and making their mark on the entire history of art during this time), as well as Globally recognised galleries such as the Louvre. It is was also evident that as well as being woven into Paris history, art is very much the present reality. Everywhere we went, there were examples of inspired creativity at every turn. The street art around Paris rivals any city I’ve ever been to, that has a reputation for culture and contemporary art. The creative DNA certainly lives on.
Mealtimes are sacred
You don’t just “grab lunch” in Paris, you take a 2-hour lunch break and have a three-course meal. Food is there to be savoured and enjoyed. And the time you spend doing that is precious. Next time you take lunch, take that full hour, eat something worthy of your time and socialise with people who bring joy to your day!
Paris is a romantic city
This may seem like a cliché… but it really is! This was evident everywhere we went. The heart-shaped locks covering the metal fences around the Sacre Coeur, the beautiful buildings and aesthetics of the city, the atmospheric orange hue that submerges you as the sun goes down and the lights go up… there’s so much romance and it’s hard not to feel wooed.
Style is important
Parisians are known for being stylish and they really do live up to this reputation! Whether it’s the cutting edge Fashion kid, the minimalist style maven or the sartorialist purist – effortless style is the mark of the true Parisian.
There is so much from my key takeaways that I can now relate back to the brand, and we’re in a much better position to understand the Parisian lifestyle that inspires and drives the St Pierre brand.
Paris and Montmartre (that’s a whole other blog post!) are the ultimate reference point for the rich story behind St Pierre and we can’t wait to tell it.