Mael Barth: “The brands of the future will stand out through the sincerity and depth of their promises”

In 2019 Mael Barth (EDHEC Master 1999) took over as chairperson of Jour, a pioneering brand in healthy and socially committed fast food, well known for its lunchtime offer of custom-made salads. It started out in Paris and the surrounding region, but in recent years has expanded to other regions (Lyon, Marseille, Ajaccio, Nice, Lille, Bordeaux, La Réunion) and even internationally (Geneva, Luxembourg). Do local dining, healthy food and slow food have a real impact? What marks the difference between the “utilitarian” meal and the experience? Here the former chair of the EDHEC Student Bureau addresses the issues he faces in her everyday work.  

How do you view the “quest for meaning” of young graduates arriving on the job market?

There are very high expectations emerging at an increasingly young age among today’s recruits, but paradoxically the life of a company still depends on its performances, projects and successes, and so a “timeframe” that is often longer than this immediate quest. For top executives, the correlation is not easy to strike: new staff want to have an impact immediately, but in most companies the culture is based on long-term decisions, with reality often trumping the best intentions. At Jour, I try to generate meaning without being fake, with trust and transparency about what can be achieved and when, while keeping an eye on what is “reasonable” for the company. Given our market positioning, there is strong demand from our clients and employees for us to make commitments: their demands are very often quite similar and allow us to move in the right directions, without plunging headlong in pursuit of the latest trend. As an employee, I have always sought sincerity and trust, and I think that nowadays it is really best to avoid lies or false promises, and to have confidence in the judgement of others, whether employees, clients or shareholders, rather than leading them on a merry dance and generating frustration! 

How do you go about achieving that at Jour?

Since the brand was first created, we have done a great deal of things without necessarily communicating about them. The aim now is to continue along this path while structuring our communication approach to say what we are doing and how we are doing it. We also wish to go further by working on our raison d’être, our societal mission, far beyond simply using French or organic produce. I think that the brands of the future will stand out through the sincerity and depth of their promises. This allows you to have motivated staff teams show up every morning smiling and eager to do their job well. Beyond our core business, which is fast food, our societal contribution needs to occupy an increasingly important place in our strategic choices in the medium and long term, whereby we set ourselves truly measurable and measured goals.

Before I joined the world of catering generally and Jour specifically, I spent around 15 years in financial consulting, working on acquisitions, growth management and restructuring projects. Following those experiences, I gradually developed an appetite for a more entrepreneurial environment, one in which I could have more of an impact (just like today’s young recruits!). And that’s what I’m trying to do every day at Jour, convinced that the payoff in terms of staff commitment, customer satisfaction and ultimately company performance will be substantial.

Have you noticed a decline in customer numbers at Jour restaurants – primarily located in office districts – due to more and more people working from home since Covid?

Yes, we’ve seen changing habits during and after Covid due to developments in the way work is organised, but without measuring the definitive effects of these changes. We need to constantly adapt and be in a position to serve our customers wherever they may be. And so this situation has allowed us to confirm some of our past strategic choices (developing a Click & Collect offer on our website and online order app, with a very fast pickup service in restaurants) and to progress in some areas like expanding our opening hours in the evening. Covid has also enabled us to attract new customers, in particular small firms and freelancers, who were still showing up for work in person when bars and cafes had to close. There was less choice in traditional outlets, so it was a chance for them to discover our brand and become loyal customers. You could have lunch at one of our restaurants three times a week, since we offer custom-made salads and the products we sell are healthy, which is not necessarily the case in pizza or burger joints.

Is there also a general trend towards eating more healthily?

That trend could already be observed before Covid, even in the fast food sector, particularly in city centres at lunchtime, but it has gained ground. The origin of products, traceability and quality have also become very important for customers who want to eat quickly but well. In our restaurants we display blackboards indicating the origin of our products with seasonal menus; we were the first to have French quinoa! Customers are sensitive to all of these aspects, and the market is expanding. Eating healthily while at the same time enjoying tasty and generous food – that is where our market niche can be situated. Of course a salad is by definition healthier than a sirloin steak, but the challenge with a salad is to make eating it a pleasure, ensuring it has flavour and seasoning, with ingredients like hummus, falafels or tzatziki. The goal is not to say that in order to eat well there must be less pleasure, on the contrary! It is by offering a warm setting and gourmet products that we will manage to shake things up, not by emphasising restraint or guilt.

How do you create that warm atmosphere? 

In the past our restaurants were very bright and well lit, which was virtuous in terms of projecting an image of purity, but I found it a bit cold and not welcoming enough. We’ve tweaked the brand’s colours (in particular by shifting from a “lettuce” green logo to an “English” green one that is both more mature and warmer), as well as the layout, comfort and materials used in our restaurants, and we have trained staff how to “enchant” customers. Our profession as caterers is about creating an experience that justifies the appeal of coming to sample our produce on site, even more so with the success of delivery platforms. Just as humans won’t be able to spend their whole lives working from home, with no contact with others, neither will we be able to spend it eating home-delivered meals on our couch … even if they are good quality or enjoyed in the company of friends! Shared living and cultivating a social experience are part of humanity. 

Would you say today there is a polarisation between slow food and junk food?

Not necessarily. When you look at the figures, you see that fast food continues to perform very well, whatever form it takes! There is still a gap between reality and the discourse of consumers and major brands. I also believe we all have multiple personas: at times we are very careful about what we eat, we look after our health, but then we let go and prioritise pleasure by turning to richer food. All of this makes perfect sense and brings us back to our objective not to be extremist when it comes to “eating well”. Again this is that question of restraint: we have to seek pleasure while at the same time eating more healthily, and not get bored or deprive ourselves. If our business model was built solely on vegans, we really wouldn’t have enough customers! But we can still cater for them, just as we can cater for the typical meat lover or customer looking for a copious meal.

Would you say that Jour tries to educate consumers in that respect?

We try to contribute as much as possible by advocating change in these areas. You might say this is where we extend beyond a pure mission as a fast food provider. Our goal is not only to sell salads and ensure people eat well, but also to place the quality of produce and food at the centre of the debate. Major conquests are made up of small victories: we do our best in many areas, while remaining consistent. It’s all very well not to offer tomatoes in winter, but if mangoes, pineapples and avocados are still on the menu, isn’t it just a marketing trick? But looking for local supplies and progressing each year, not offering products that have been transported by plane, these are things that are both possible and viable for the company!

Why did you choose to run as a candidate for the EDHEC Student Bureau rather than another association? 

I mainly chose EDHEC for the quality of its associations. At the Student Bureau, I liked the idea of organising and contributing to student life throughout the year, rather than a goal of running a single event or producing a guide. I also felt it had a broader scope of action and I loved the way the campaign and elections unfolded, putting together a team and pursuing a clear shared objective. We also had to reach out to all students, to understand and convince them. I like that type of challenge, especially when it allows me to align my desires with a wonderful common goal!

If you were still chair of the Student Bureau as you were in the late 90s, what would you change about the way you ran it?

Some of today’s challenges didn’t exist when I was there. There was no social media, we were among the first generations to have email addresses (Hotmail or Caramail!), mobile phones were just gradually beginning to be accessible to all. Issues surrounding image are quite different nowadays, particularly on social media. The curriculums have also changed, I think: they are more international and more “à la carte”. In the life of a degree programme, students alternate much more between work and studies, and the gap year has become institutionalised. I think maybe students see their classmates a bit less than in my day, which has a significant impact on the way life in the school is managed.

What do you remember about student life during your EDHEC years?

Each age comes with a different life. When you’re in preparatory studies, with just a few exceptions and the odd show-off, you prioritise your academic success and you can’t party all the time or make any significant contribution to social life. Then you arrive at a business school far from home, completely free, it’s a whole other experience and way of being. Sometimes that can involve different experiences, but each student has the opportunity to construct who they are at some point. We shouldn’t reproach or condemn that period of freedom and possibility (associations, curriculum, human exchanges) that a business school offers. It’s also what allows you to shape yourself, grow and not just end up in a monotonous career, bearing in mind that in a company soft skills and experience add essential value to what you do. If you have excellent soft skills but lack rigour, things are complicated. If you’re highly structured but can’t take a step back and show empathy or think outside the box, that also reveals significant gaps.