The idea being to offer fruit in a bottle

You have certainly crossed one day in your supermarket or in the sandwich neighbourhood his small face stylized, topped by a Halo. Would God without confession to these small bottles of pressed fruit that have made Europe the delights of the "smoothie". Innocent British society is living proof that you can still launch innovative and public businesses in Europe, and that there is no need to sell neckties on the Internet. Started zero ten years ago, at the same time that Google, in obviously not experienced relentless growth, but brings the same ingredients: a true entrepreneurial adventure in the colours of the 21st century. With more than 200 people and 100 million of turnover in eleven European countries, its course is exemplary and already studied in business schools. The recent entry to his capital of Coca-Cola sounded as a consecration, providing the financial means for its development, while leaving poses the threat of the end of the independence of a company that sells just as much a product values.

Sign of the times, as the stars of the American business, the founders have already held to narrate their adventure in a book published last month (1). Without a penny in hand and after have sounded in vain at the door of 20 banks, three creative apprentices present their project to investors in venture capital. Answer: "on our criteria, you have any false." You are too young, you are friends, you have never conducted business, you have no experience in the sector and you want to compete with the food giants!

However, the key to the success of Innocent lies well in these two ingredients: a team and a concept. As for Google, created by two friends of Stanford University.

The team here, brings together three friends of Cambridge, live, come and go on holiday together. Terrible for doing business don't Except that these three - there are very complementary. Richard Reed is a man of ideas and the pitch, it is he who is behind the Magpies labels wish adorning the small bottles. Jon Wright is a technology fana. Adam Balon, him, is vendor-born. They are inseparable and see life in the same way: urban, intense, night and, of course, mullahs with a good dose of consciousness (or bad conscience) ecological. From the beginning, they decide that none of the three will be the leader and that all decisions will be collective. The single investor that they will not eventually find, by flooding their knowledge of an e-mail entitled "Anyone know someone rich", is an American, Maurice Pinto, which progresses the 230,000 books needed for startup. His tactics to him is to base priority on the quality of the leadership team. Later, he will recognize that "they spend hours to discuss decisions to take, primarily, to seek consensus, but their good decisions from the bad is absolutely extraordinary" (2). Complementarity will be further refined by professional experience in the pub, McKinsey, Bain and Virgin Cola. What give the taste of the strategy and management.

Second asset, the clarity and scope of the concept: allow the urban eager to eat healthily. A vision capable of passing the "granny test": easy understanding by his grandmother. The idea being to offer fruit in a bottle. In other words, not the juice of fruit, but fresh fruit pressed, without any other additives. The vision of a food of quality to destination managers stressed is not new. Thus, in Britain, the P & J Corporation, which will be later bought by Tropicana, already proposed "smoothies", but they were made from concentrate and supplemented with conservatives. When the trio was the industrial tour, they have all said that it was not possible to industrially produce a "smoothie" 100 fruit and without additives. As the three friends requested quality fruit which they could control the origin indicated with pride on the bottle and put in place policies of fair trade. They however eventually find a young company at the bottom of the country of Wales has agreed to take the risk with motivated strangers.

Another consequence of this decision to associate health and pure fruit, that of the price, substantially more expensive competition in place. Which position the product at the top of range, limits its growth, and pushes the company to communicate widely to justify such costs to purchase.

The most spectacular of the story lies in the consistency of the company to align all of these parameters on this concept, with yet limited resources. Internally, this means five values that constitute the central dogma to which must be fulfilled all employees: "natural, entrepreneurial, accountable, commercial and generous." Working in shorts, on playing table soccer, but it is noted every six months, and those that harvest a zero (out of five) are asked to leave. On the environmental plan, all of the activity subject to a carbon footprint with objectives of reducing emissions and waste and renewable energy to all the floors.

Outward actions go with more ambitious, as participation in the implementation of farm fair in South America, to the communication on the packaging and special operations such as the one which was to seek volunteers for knitting a small bonnet to cap bottles and help the poor with the collected money. Each year, 10 of profits are donated to a foundation which manages charities. Of course, it is essential to communicate to the client all these commitments since it is also this that he bought with his small bottle.

The commitment is so strong now that some tattoo mark, while the T-shirts and other events focused a very strong community.

But the crisis is pushing to seek growth. With 65 of the market in Great Britain, Innocent was full. In addition, the recession there was depressed consumption. Result, stagnant sales and profits have not been to the appointment in 2008. Hence the arrival of Coca and the urgency to find relays elsewhere. At first, then other foreign products responding to the same values. The image of what it did in Britain, brand chose to leave, as in France in 2007. An important but more waterproof market young companies because locked by large distribution, who doesn't love the novelty or expensive and complicated products. In addition, Tropicana, group Pepsi, has overtaken on the linear with its own "smoothies". The offensive began in places more "receptive" to these urban developments, such as Monoprix or the sandwich bars.

But a more serious danger threatened Innocent. The corporation succeeds to safeguard its independence and its values after the merger with Coca-Cola Already, the fans themselves are insurgents, as they were surprised to see the products sold at McDonald's. "Our products are for sale, but not our values", answered Richard Reed. The beginning of the end of innocence.