Camembert market leader, the major brand of the Lactalis group, who celebrated his 55th birthday in 2023, largely contributed to maintaining the popularity of France's most famous cheese.
With its iconic black box, red and gold and its unifying name, President became, over the years, an iconic Camembert brand. It is today the leader in France on this market with 21,6% market share. In 2023, the brand increased its sales by 9,4% by volume. It continues its action started ten years ago to ensure that this product continues in the consumption habits of the French., by encouraging us to reinvent uses around Camembert. In 2015, President was the first brand on the market to launch a digital and in-store communication operation around the consumption of Camembert as an aperitif.. For two years, the brand deploys two highlights per year to develop hot uses : “Camembert au Oven” and “Camembert au Barbecue”, according to the seasons. Today, the range of its Camemberts is rich in a large number of varieties alongside the classic President Camembert to taste. President thus pursues the ambition of its founder, Michel Besnier, to make Camembert a high-end everyday product, both traditional and trendy, in line with contemporary lifestyles.
The Camembert Cathedral
Nicknamed the “Camembert Cathedral”, the Domfront cheese factory, in Orne in the Normandy region, is today the largest cheese production unit in the world with 10 cheeses produced every second, i.e. 500,000 per day and 25,000 tonnes annually! A state-of-the-art cheese factory, located in the heart of the Norman bocage. The Camembert Cathedral sees its production capacity increase again this year thanks to investments amounting to 70 million euros, which will allow it to expand its range of products and accelerate innovation.
A unifying product
Created in 1968 by Michel Besnier, the President brand has helped shape the destiny of Camembert in France and around the world. It was in 1933 that Michel Besnier's father, André, made its first camemberts in the heart of Mayenne under the Le Petit Lavallois brand. He was far from suspecting that this modest company would give birth to the future Lactalis group., today the world’s leading dairy player. Visionary entrepreneur, Michel Besnier had the idea of offering a quality cheese accessible to all, to which he wanted to give a unifying name : President. Michel Besnier pays particular attention to packaging, which is inspired by the high-end codes of whiskey, an innovative bet for the time.
A technological innovation
But it is a technological innovation that will anchor the brand in the basket of French households : the use of pasteurized milk, which supports a longer shelf life and guarantees a more stable taste over time. Characteristics that allow it to meet the needs of large-scale distribution, of which the President’s pie chart will support the development. And this is the origin of a new impetus in the consumption of Camembert, President helped maintain the popularity of an iconic cheese that the French consider to be part of their heritage.
PRESIDENT IN NUMBERS
No. 1 in notoriety and image.
37 million President Camemberts sold per year.8,4 million purchasing households.
