Marie Morin Canada: gourmet exports
Marie Morin Canada, a small business based on Montreal’s South Shore, entered the niche market of high-end desserts 20 years ago. Today, the company employs about a hundred people and exports over 200 containers a year to a dozen countries, including China, Taiwan, Qatar and Australia. Its strengths: an allegiance to quality local products, a flair for conquering new markets and an advantageous geographical location at the heart of Greater Montreal’s logistics ecosystem.
All in the family
CEO and founder of Marie Morin Canada David Morin has been active in the dessert industry since he was young. It was his father who developed the chocolate mousse recipe that led to the inception and success of the Marie Morin brand in France in 1994.
Ten years later, David decided to launch a North American branch of the company. What prompted him to make this choice? “During a trip, I realized that there was an untapped market to capture: high-end desserts.” After analyzing the market and the opportunities, he chose Quebec “for the French language,” he said.
During a trip, I realized that there was an untapped market to capture: high-end desserts.
In trying to tap into an untapped market, the company got off to a rocky start. “Eating habits were completely different from the European market. The ready-to-eat fresh dessert category didn’t exist. We got off to a very slow start...” The big break came when the team managed to get Costco to test their products. “I remember the buyer telling me, “I’ll take a pallet, but if I can’t sell it, I’m sending it back to you! Result: the pallet sold out in two days, and the next order was for 10 pallets.”
Intent on developing its export markets, the company acquired the necessary equipment to produce frozen as well as fresh products, to be able to reach destinations all over the globe. Success soon spread regionally, then internationally. Texas, California, the Midwest and Florida were first into the order book, followed by Australia, China, Mexico and Taiwan, often through well-known banners such as Costco. ‘Every new market we target requires research. We assess opportunities, adapt to different sanitary standards, rework packaging,’ Generally speaking, positive reactions are not long in coming. “In Taiwan, for example, we had planned for six containers a year. Now we’re at six containers every three months!”
A mix of classics and novelties
What sells best? The house classics: crème brûlée and caramel flan. Then there are the products developed for local markets and different seasons. For North America, for example, Marie Morin launched its own version of cheesecake, and for the sugaring-off season, his take on Quebec’s classic pouding chômeur and an apple product for autumn. “The recipes aren’t always the same. We adapt to tastes, but also to the availability of ingredients, depending on the season.”
Quality remains a constant. “That is Marie Morin’s basic concept, to select ingredients with care. Eighty percent of our ingredients are local and fresh,” he told us. Only two ingredients are imported: the liquid caramel and the crème brûlée caramel pouches.
That is Marie Morin’s basic concept, to select ingredients with care. Eighty percent of our ingredients are local and fresh.
Since freshness is a must, the company depends on tight logistics. “It takes a lot of reactivity and proactivity to avoid losing time in transit. We receive products on a weekly or bi-weekly basis, and we store all our packaging nearby. So, as soon as the purchase order is received, the team assembles the necessary equipment and starts production. One stage follows the other: preparation, filling, baking and packaging. Once the pallets are loaded, they are placed in refrigerated containers and shipped. Depending on the distance to be covered, the temperature inside the container varies between refrigerated and frozen.
What makes these tight logistics possible? The plant’s location on the outskirts of Montreal, offering the triple advantage of access to a densely populated area and a vast network of agricultural producers, along with Greater Montreal’s logistics ecosystem, port facilities and road and rail networks serving the province, the country and the United States.
With such a winning recipe, the hundred-strong company has weathered the many crises that rocked supply chains over the past two years. ”’We’re an SME, but we’re taking on the giants.” In view of all the challenges businesses face, including rising costs and labour shortages, “we have to keep our products affordable, even if costs are skyrocketing. But we have a flexibility that the bigger companies don’t have. We look for and find alternatives.”
We’re an SME, but we’re taking on the giants. We have a flexibility that the bigger companies don’t have. We look for and find alternatives
And David Morin has no shortage of future projects, including ideas for developing new products such as an organic line or a summery dessert flavoured with lemon yuzu. “There’s a rapidly growing demand for innovation. At our end, we’re creative and full of ideas!”
Marie Morin desserts travel in refrigerated containers. Each reefer is equipped with a temperature control system, capable of maintaining temperatures from -300 C to +300 C, and must be electrically powered at all times. Marie Morin Canada exports over 200 containers a year to a dozen countries, including China, Taiwan, Qatar and Australia. Eighty percent of the ingredients are local and fresh. Only two ingredients are imported: the liquid caramel and the crème brûlée caramel pouches.
