Dubai: UAE’s home-brewed cafe brand, Gerard Café, is eyeing franchising possibilities in the UAE and beyond.
“It will depend on the size, location and many other aspects ... I will choose the franchisees,” said Gerard Reymond, the 63-year old founder. “It has to be someone who can sustain the brand.”
Reymond, popular with patrons for his chatty style of mingling with guests, preferred not to reveal how much it would cost to use his brand name.
A franchisee has been identified for Ras Al Khaimah. The original brand, which started out Sharjah in 1978, currently operates eight locations in the UAE. Reymond plans to secure around 10 franchisees in coming years before embarking on another dream of his — a Dubai-based training centre to pass on the art of French pastries. “I want to teach others now; I’ve done a lot myself,” Reymond said.
“There is a staff member I brought in when he didn’t know anything about the trade. Now he’s making sandwiches and coffee and enjoying the experience. I want to share that with others.”
Reymond added that “you need a high-tech ‘lab’ of sorts to ‘build’ your creations in a patisserie. You don’t ‘cook’ like you would in kitchen.”
Though everything on the menu is ‘built’ in the ‘lab’, Reymond has taken on more of a supervisory role rather than making all the treats himself. “We make everything ourselves — fresh and with a personal touch. We have our own brand of Gerard coffee too.”
The coffee, available at Dh120 a kilo, is made in Italy using a blend of Arabic and Robusta verities. There is even Arabic and Turkish coffee sold at the outlets.
“I’m not in France, I’m here in Dubai. You have to know what your customers want and you have to deliver on that. I adapt, I personalise, I improvise according to where I am.”
Reymond can be seen at the branch in Jumeirah daily, greeting new guests as well as catching up with old ones. It is this approach that has won him customer loyalty stretching back decades. “I’m too nice, you don’t have a choice,” he quipped.
Reymond, who still spends time in the kitchen, says he doesn’t fear competition from global coffee chains that have mushroomed in the UAE over the years. “I know my customers and my customers know me. With us, it’s not about paying first, grabbing your drink, and then leaving.
“It’s about the conversations. I tell you about my life, you tell me about your life.”
