With passion and craftsmanship, La Lorraine Bakery Group (LLBG) enters the Dutch market. For five years, La Lorraine has been active in the Dutch retail market in addition to foodservice. Product leadership is key. "With our innovative products, we also want to surprise the retail market," says Marc Middelweerd, Country Director Netherlands of La Lorraine Bakery Group.
One thing is clear when you enter the premises of La Lorraine Bakery Group in Beesd: hospitality is highly valued here. In the kitchen on the ground floor, culinary advisor Carlo van Meerten is ready to provide guests with a taste experience. La Lorraine has been housed here for two years. "We are very happy with this brand-new building," Marc says. "Here, in our reception area, we can provide our customers with a taste experience. Because at our office, a customer is not just a customer, but a guest."
You have been working at La Lorraine Bakery Group for seven years now. What stood out to you when you started here?
"I came from retail and ended up in foodservice: a completely different world, of craftsmanship and passion. Retail is tougher, driven by analytics, and heavily focused on price. In the bakery world, numbers are of course important, but craftsmanship and relationships are just as crucial. That's where La Lorraine excels, I quickly noticed: thinking in terms of hospitality. Our account managers are true professionals with a vast network and deep product knowledge. They invest their expertise and experience in building relationships with, for example, head chefs of major chains. This is where the push-pull game comes into play: if the head chefs of several major locations within a chain are convinced that a specific sandwich adds value to their menu engineering, they will persuade their buyers. Our culinary team also plays a significant role in this, as they speak the language of the chefs."
La Lorraine is not yet well-known in the Netherlands. Tell us, where does La Lorraine come from?
"La Lorraine Bakery Group is a unique company in the bakery world with Belgian roots. It has been around for over 85 years and is one hundred percent a family business, now led by the third generation of the Vanherpe family. With a turnover of 1.6 billion euros, LLBG is a major international player in the bakery industry, with core values such as respect and entrepreneurship. LLBG operates throughout Europe and in the Middle East. The first steps are being taken in America and Canada. We are present in more than forty countries and have eighteen bakeries in various countries. Not only in Belgium, but also in Poland, Czech Republic, Romania, Hungary, Turkey, Italy, and even in Abu Dhabi. In Belgium, La Lorraine is the market leader for both freshly baked and bake-off bakery products. In the Dutch market, we offer only frozen bake-off products for retail and foodservice."
How long have you been active in the Netherlands?
"We have been active in the Netherlands for over 25 years with the brand Panesco, our dominant brand in Foodservice. In 2019, LLBG acquired Panesco entirely. This marked the beginning of La Lorraine Bakery Group in the Netherlands, and that's when I joined. My task was to integrate Panesco into LLBG, professionalize it, and double the turnover. Initially, it was focused solely on foodservice, with Panesco mainly operating in casual dining (restaurants), hotels, and catering channels. In addition to these channels, we have also increased our focus on 'convenience' locations such as gas stations, holiday parks, and major chains on the high street. Furthermore, we have become more active in the retail channel."
What products do you offer in the Dutch market?
"Our main focus is on bread. Additionally, we excel in viennoiserie, pastries, donuts, and savory snacks – such as börek, which we introduced a few years ago. Normally, trends emerge mainly in foodservice, but with börek, it was different. These products have proven to be very successful in the retail channel in recent years and are now starting to gain ground in foodservice. This is also because we recently introduced the mini börek, which has been successful in the banquet menu of hotels, instead of a bitterball."
How do you recognize La Lorraine products?
"La Lorraine opts for the strategy of product leadership: we aim for the highest quality and unique products, especially in the mid-range and premium segments. The market is like a pyramid: at the bottom, it's about affordable products with a large volume, like kaiser rolls. Moving up, you find bread with flour, seeds, and grains. The top of the pyramid is the luxury segment, with more artisanal products. Our Italian schiacciata products are a good example of this."
"In this segment, we often think with our customers about how they can make a difference and add value. Together with our culinary team, we inspire our customers on how to present a new sandwich to their guests. Schiacciata is a very successful concept in the foodservice industry. We will soon expand this to the retail channel, always having a distinctive story between our products in the foodservice channel and the retail channel."
Retail is a different ball game. How do you approach this market?
"Similar to foodservice, in retail, we follow our product leadership strategy, focusing on beautiful new innovations that make a difference on the shelf and add value to the category. This way, we can differentiate ourselves from the many standard products present in the retail channel. The difference with foodservice is that in retail, we have access to much more detailed data. That's why we hired a category manager a year and a half ago who can identify market opportunities for a specific retailer based on data and insights. Currently, we focus more on 'solution selling' rather than traditional 'product selling.' We are seeing a significant growth in the savory category, driven by börek. With our innovations, such as sweet börek (strawberry, apple-cinnamon, and pistachio), we can help our retailers further expand this segment."
What are the key points for the Dutch market?
"In addition to new business with new customers, in foodservice, we focus on our 'hero products' with existing customers. From our 583 products, we have selected a top 10 of products we are particularly proud of. We showcase these products to our loyal customers, such as our high-quality brioche buns."
"Innovation is very important to us. In the Netherlands, we started working on the table bread as an appetizer in restaurants. Initially, we only had one product for this segment, and through innovation, we achieved success with our luxurious table bread. Beautiful innovations attract attention."
How do you introduce these innovations to the market?
"We participate in international and local trade shows. Additionally, we strategically introduce our new products. A table bread wouldn't be suitable for a gas station. Our account managers play a crucial role in this: which five customers in your region are important to make this product successful?"
"Furthermore, in the coming years, we will guide our account managers even more with data. Data provides valuable information: where is the growth, what are the trends and developments? Based on postal codes, for example, we can see what each customer buys from us. Anticipating this information offers opportunities. We can't serve the entire market. Data helps us make the right choices."
You're growing at a rate of about 10% every year. That's significant. How does that impact your organization?
“The strong growth calls for a new step. We currently have about 20 full-time employees in Beesd. We are expanding our operations in the Netherlands, particularly in finance and marketing. That's why we are actively looking for new team members with an entrepreneurial spirit and a proactive attitude. You will have a lot of autonomy in your role within a certain framework. I have experienced this myself. I work for a large company, but at the same time, it also feels like my own business. Know your business and take responsibility. Better to ask for forgiveness afterwards than permission beforehand.”
Are you looking for people mainly from the food industry or more from retail?
“I believe in a combination of people from both industries. We can learn a lot from each other and complement each other. Moreover, you see more and more blurring in the market. Consider an AH To Go along the highway. Retail and food are becoming more intertwined. People from retail are strong in analytics and numbers-driven. In the food industry, quality and good relationships are very important. We need that combination. That's why we're not looking for lone wolves, but for people who can collaborate effectively.”
[publication June 2026]
