Interesting interview with the owners of Le Petit Plaisir wine cellar
A friendly, innovative wine cellar
Sébastien, the owner of the Le Petit Plaisir wine cellar, has always been passionate about wine. He started out by opening his first wine cellar. It was during a discussion between friends that a new concept was born: Le Petit Plaisir.
The business opened in March 2023 in Lamalou-les-Bains. The business developed by taking part in aperitifs organised in the streets of the town. All the shopkeepers would set up tables outside so that everyone could get together and share a good time. Sébastien was in charge of the drinks, and Virginie, his wife, was in charge of creating the beautiful tapas boards. One thing led to another, and the owners of the wine bar began to organise events in their store, such as wine workshops and meetings with winegrowers.
Today, the wine bars offer lunch and dinner only in season, and as soon as the season is over, the workshops resume to liven up the town and entertain the local population. In order to offer an innovative range of quality products, Sébastien and Virginie regularly take part in wine and delicatessen tastings to add a touch of originality to their business.
A carefully thought-out wine cellar layout
Sébastien and Virginie's wine cellar has a large surface area: 100m², including 30m² for the storeroom and kitchen, and 70m² for the dining room. They divided the space in two to add the wine and spirits shelving on one side, and the tables for the restaurant area on the other.
Due to budgetary constraints, the wine merchants decided not to call on the services of a layout professional. However, they did enlist the help of a family member for interior design advice, and others came in to do the painting. They drew inspiration from professional furniture by visiting cellars to imagine their layout. Sébastien decided to build his own furniture to keep costs down for his first business. For Le Petit Plaisir, however, he opted for much more solid shelving, in keeping with the ambience he wanted for their wine cellar.
As for the criteria, it was important for the owners of Le Petit Plaisir to have furnishings adapted to the size of the bottles, particularly spirits. They also wanted furniture with storage space so that they could replenish the shelves more easily. They opted for wooden furniture to create a convivial, sharing atmosphere. So they looked for visuals of furniture in existing shops to get a better idea of what it could look like.
Furniture and services tailored to independent retailers
During their research, the wine merchants used the information on the product sheets to help them choose furniture that was suited to the needs of their profession: shelving with compartments to segment their offer, furniture with storage space to make it easier to restock shelves, and solid wood to ensure it was robust enough to withstand the weight of the bottles.
The notions of stock availability for each item and the delivery times displayed were very important for the owners of the wine cellar so that they could order in time for the opening of their business. What's more, the option of paying in several instalments, free of charge, was very useful, as they were able to spread out their monthly payments without difficulty.
Today, Sébastien and Virginie are very satisfied with their purchase from TRADIS. The furniture was delivered assembled, allowing them to save time on their work, and thanks to the delivery appointment they were able to get organised and take delivery of their order. Wine merchants recommend TRADIS to all independent retailers who want quality furniture tailored to their profession.
