Leading brioche brand, St Pierre Bakery, has secured new distribution with the world’s second largest retailer, Costco.
The brand launched into the Bay Area division in 2021, distributed across 57 sites. After a successful launch, Costco has now added St Pierre’s core range to its Los Angeles division stores – initially through 30 of the 59 clubs in the LA division.
The move will see Costco become one of St Pierre Bakery’s largest customers on the West Coast. Both West Coast divisions will offer a twin-packed 6 count of St Pierre’s best-selling Brioche Burger Buns whilst the Costco Bay Area clubs will also offer a twin-packed 6 count of St Pierre Brioche Hot Dog Rolls, to cater to grilling season demand.
David Wagstaff, VP North America for St Pierre Bakery comments, “Our business with Costco is going from strength-to-strength and is a key part of our growth plans for the next three years. It’s an incredible achievement for a brand in its relative infancy and testament to the work we have done in building St Pierre in America.
“It’s also a great example of how we work in collaboration with our retail partners, to ensure that we are offering the right products in a relevant format. The twin-pack offering is something we currently only do for Costco – because it works for their shoppers. We have invested in making St Pierre work for Costco, making the brand available across various trade channels and to go above and beyond for our customers.”
The brand recently announced a $10mn investment in its supply chain infrastructure to support increased distribution – no doubt an investment that hasn’t gone unnoticed by the retailer.
Since launching in May last year, sales of St Pierre in Costco are up 56 per cent and the brand boasts an average fill rate of 98 per cent – despite disruptions to the supply chain that have left many suppliers struggling to meet customer expectations.
The distribution news comes shortly after St Pierre attended its first Expo West Show in Anaheim, cementing the brand strength, particularly on the West Coast. St Pierre is also gearing up to return to IDDBA in Atlanta in June, where the team plans to demonstrate its investment in an expanded merchandising program this year.
Wagstaff continues, “As a brand, we go above and beyond expectations to service our customers to the high standards they’ve come to expect. This year, part of that looks to our investment in stand-out merchandising, to drive footfall to the ISB and increase basket spend. Our plan for IDDBA is to highlight everything the brand has to offer and demonstrate the many qualities that set us apart from any other brand the retail market.”
The St Pierre brand is now worth more than $100 million in the US alone, having expanded its distribution and American team in 2021. The business opened its first American offices in Cincinnati in November last year and invested $10 million in its supply chain to support continued growth in 2022.
For more information, or to register to meet the St Pierre team at IDDBA, visit www.stpierretrade.com.
