Maison Mercier

What Maison Mercier does

Maison Mercier (legal entity: BISCUITERIE CHOCOLATERIE MERCIER SAS) is a family-owned artisanal chocolate and biscuit maker founded in 1912 in Baugy, in the Berry region of central France, and currently in its fourth generation of family operation under Daniel Mercier (Maître Artisan Chocolatier and co-founder) and his son Julien Mercier. The company produces an entirely artisanal range in a single workshop, organized across three core pillars: chocolates (Écrins de Chocolats assortments, single-origin Tablettes ORIGINES, baking pistoles, Jeux en Chocolat board games, and signature trompe-l'œil specialties such as Le Berrichon chocolate camembert), biscuits (sweet heritage recipes such as Croquets du Berry and savory varieties featuring regional French cheeses), and gourmandises (fruit spreads, confectionery, marshmallow bears). Sourcing centers on pure cocoa butter (no palm oil, no preservatives) and the Cacao-Trace program, with documented origins in Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, Costa Rica, Venezuela, Peru, Ecuador, Papua New Guinea, and Vietnam.

The business model is direct-to-consumer e-commerce first, operated through the proprietary storefront lamaisonmercier.com, supplemented by physical boutiques in France offering Click & Collect and a network of organic digital channels (Facebook, Instagram, email newsletter). Products are shipped across metropolitan France only via Colissimo and carrier, with free delivery from €40; international shipping, Corsica, and DOM-TOM are explicitly excluded. Pricing is unit-based, ranging from approximately €3.90 to €54.90, with no subscription model, no wholesale distribution of scale, and a secondary B2B/hospitality gifting segment that is not quantified in the available data. Share capital is €300,000, headcount is 11-50, and the company is privately held with no external investors, no funding rounds, no subsidiaries, and no M&A activity disclosed.

The company's go-to-market is product-led growth, leveraging seasonal collections (Fête des Pères, Idées Cadeaux), curated gift sets, and a heritage narrative transmitted across four generations. Distribution is intentionally limited to a single domestic market, and the company participates in industry-level initiatives (Daniel Mercier is President of the Club des Chocolatiers Engagés) rather than building a multi-brand portfolio. Customer engagement relies on owned channels — a wishlist feature, account login, blog-style editorial content on company history and values, and a small social media footprint — with no evidence of paid acquisition, marketplace presence, or international expansion.

Name

Maison Mercier

Legal name

BISCUITERIE CHOCOLATERIE MERCIER SAS

Website

https://lamaisonmercier.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1912

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Maison Mercier is a fourth-generation, family-owned French chocolatier and biscuit maker founded in 1912 in Baugy, Berry, selling artisanal chocolates, biscuits, and confectionery direct-to-consumers via its e-commerce site and physical boutiques across mainland France.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Artisanal Chocolates and Biscuits

NAICS

Chocolate and Confectionery Manufacturing (31135), Retail Bakeries (311811)

SIC

Sugar & Confectionery Products (2060), Bakery Products (2050)

akta.pro primary industry

Confectionery Manufacturing (Chocolate, Candy, Gum) (AFAKAAAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Chocolate & Chocolate Confectionery (CRADABAA)

Keywords

• Artisanal chocolates
• Handcrafted biscuits
• Single-origin chocolate
• Gourmet confectionery
• Regional French pastries

Headquarters

HQ city

Baugy

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Direct E-commerce Sales: Maison Mercier operates its own e-commerce website (lamaisonmercier.com) selling directly to consumers across France. Products are shipped via colissimo or carrier to home addresses, with free delivery from €40 in mainland France. Click & Collect in physical stores is also offered.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Maison Mercier manufactures and sells artisanal chocolates and biscuits directly to consumers through its e-commerce website and physical boutiques in France. Its product range includes single-origin chocolate tablets, assorted chocolate ganache and praliné gift boxes, chocolate pistoles for baking, trompe-l'œil chocolate specialties (including the signature Le Berrichon chocolate camembert), edible chocolate board games, regional sweet and savory biscuits, fruit spreads, and assorted confections, all produced in its workshop in Baugy, Berry.

Product overview

Maison Mercier operates as a family-owned artisanal chocolate and biscuit maker established in 1912 in Baugy, France. The company offers a diversified portfolio organized around three core pillars: (1) Chocolats—comprising Écrins de Chocolats (artisanal gift boxes of ganaches and pralinés), Tablettes ORIGINES (single-origin chocolate tablets from 8+ countries), Chocolat à Pâtisser in pistole form for baking, Jeux en Chocolat (edible board games), and regional specialties including Le Berrichon (chocolate camembert trompe-l'œil); (2) Biscuits—both sweet varieties (Croquets du Berry, Sablés Pur Beurre, Palets, Tuiles) and savory apertif-style biscuits featuring regional cheeses (Parmesan AOP, Emmental, Crottin de Chavignol); and (3) Gourmandises including fruit spreads, confectioneries, and seasonal items. Products are available through the e-commerce platform with gift packaging options and free shipping in mainland France from €40.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Maison Arôme du Vieux Bourges: Croquets du Berry specialty product sold under this brand name, presented in a half-timbered house design reminiscent of their boutique in Bourges.

Products and services

• Écrins de Chocolats Assortis (Chocolate Assortment Gift Boxes) Artisanal chocolate gift boxes containing assortments of ganaches and pralinés, available in configurations of 9, 25, or 49 pieces in dark chocolate, milk chocolate, or mixed varieties, sold to consumers seeking premium gift options.
• Tablettes ORIGINES (Single-Origin Chocolate Tablets) Single-origin chocolate tablets sourced from Costa Rica, Cameroon, Vietnam (Mekong), Papua New Guinea, Venezuela, Peru, and Ecuador, with cacao percentages ranging from 34.5% to 73%, sold to consumers and connoisseurs interested in origin-specific chocolate.
• Chocolat à Pâtisser (Baking Pistoles) Chocolate pistoles (discs) in dark (66%), milk (45%), and white varieties for baking and pastry making, sold individually or in value packs with kitchen utensils, targeting home bakers and pastry enthusiasts.
• Jeux en Chocolat (Chocolate Board Games) Playable chocolate board games including Game of the Goose, Chess, Checkers, and Horse Racing, combining play with edible chocolate pieces in dark and milk chocolate, sold as novelty gift items.
• Le Berrichon (Chocolate Camembert Specialty) Trompe-l'œil chocolate camembert filled with crunchy praliné and crêpe dentelle, available in regular, mini (100g), and XXL (1200g) sizes, presented as the signature Maison Mercier specialty.
• Biscuits Sucrés (Sweet Biscuits) Sweet biscuits including Croquets du Berry (since 1920), Sablés Pur Beurre, Palets aux Framboises, Palets aux Pépites de Chocolat, Tuiles aux Amandes, and Croquants aux Noisettes à la farine d'Oudon, sold to consumers seeking traditional French sweet biscuits.
• Biscuits Salés (Savory Biscuits) Savory biscuits for aperitifs featuring regional cheeses: Sablés au Parmesan AOP, Sablés à l'Emmental, Sablés aux Olives d'Italie, Sablés au Crottin de Chavignol, Sablés Tomate Emmental Origan, and Croustades du Berry.
• Fruits à Tartiner (Artisanal Fruit Spreads) Artisanal fruit preparations (confitures) made in copper basins including Framboise, Orange à la fleur d'oranger, and Abricot, offered in 220g jars.
• Gourmandises (Assorted Confectioneries) Assorted chocolate confectioneries including Marshmallow Bears (Oursons Guimauve), Crispy Hazelnuts and Almonds, Crisped Rice covered in milk chocolate, and Chocolate Mendiant tablets.
• Coffrets Cadeaux et Idées Cadeaux (Gift Sets and Gift Ideas) Gift sets and gift ideas including chocolate assortments, baking kits (Pack à Pâtisser with pistoles and utensils), snack bags (Pochons), and themed collections for occasions such as Father's Day.

Quantifiable outcome

• Products preserve quality for 2 to 18 months (DLUO)

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• OVHminorOthersOVH is the web hosting provider for lamaisonmercier.com. OVH SAS, headquartered at 2 rue Kellermann, 59100 Roubaix, France, provides hosting services for the company's e-commerce platform.
• Crédit AgricoleminorOthersCrédit Agricole provides the payment processing infrastructure for online transactions on lamaisonmercier.com. The service uses SSL encryption and the 3D Secure protocol for secure card payments. No card data is stored on Maison Mercier's servers.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Chocolat Bonnat: Long-established French single-origin chocolate maker (since 1884) with a range of plantation-origin bars similar to Maison Mercier's Tablettes Origines, sold via its own shop and online channel. Comparable in heritage, single-origin emphasis, and family operation.
• Jacques Genin: Paris-based pastry chef and chocolatier known for hand-made bonbons, caramels, and pâtes de fruits sold through his own boutique and e-commerce. Comparable as a French artisan chocolatier emphasizing craftsmanship, gifting, and direct retail.
• Fossier: Historic French artisanal biscuit and confectionery house founded in 1756 in Reims, selling cookies and sweets directly via its own boutique and e-commerce. Closely comparable to Maison Mercier in artisanal heritage, regional identity, biscuit-and-confectionery mix, and DTC model.
• François Pralus: Independent French bean-to-bar chocolatier with single-origin tablets sourced globally and own e-commerce. Highly comparable in single-origin narrative (Tablettes Origines), artisanal production, and direct-to-consumer focus.
• Bovetti Chocolatier: French artisanal chocolate maker with DTC focus on single-origin tablets, including participation in ethical-sourcing programs such as Cacao-Trace. Comparable product mix (origin chocolate bars, gift ranges) and operational scale.

Broad incumbents

• Weiss (Chocolaterie Weiss): French chocolate manufacturer since 1882, now part of a larger group, with a heritage portfolio of tablet and confectionery lines. Comparable in heritage French chocolate positioning to Maison Mercier but with broader retail distribution and industrial production.
• Belin (LU France): Established French biscuit and cracker brand (part of Mondelēz), producing mass-market sweet and savory biscuits. Relevant for the biscuit business of Maison Mercier as a large-scale incumbent operating in the same product categories from a completely different scale and channel model.
• La Maison du Chocolat: Long-established French premium chocolate house with boutiques across Europe, the US, and Asia. Overlaps with Maison Mercier in premium positioning, bonbon/praliné expertise, and gifting, but with materially larger scale and international retail footprint.
• Valrhona: Major French premium chocolate manufacturer with a global B2B footprint (pastry chefs, chocolatiers, hospitality) and an adjacent consumer brand. Comparable in cacao-origin traceability and ethical sourcing, but operates at a much larger scale with predominantly B2B distribution.

Emerging players

• Yann Couvreur Pâtisserie: Contemporary French pastry chef chocolatier with boutique retail and growing DTC e-commerce for chocolates, viennoiseries, and gift assortments. Comparable to Maison Mercier at the gifting/boxed-confectionery intersection, with a modern brand voice but smaller artisanal footprint.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/lamaisonmercier.ca
• Instagraminstagram.com/maison_mercier_officiel/?hl=fr

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Maison Mercier