Meet the French farmers with a 24-hour self-service boutique

Camille and Caroline Coupé are the fourth generation of the family to run La Ferme Durbois west of Chartres, near Courville-sur-Eure (28).

“My father had other activities to keep the farm going, but since we took over in 2017 we have revitalised the business and work on the farm full time,” says Camille. 

“We are not organic but we produce grass-fed beef, pork, and lamb as well as eggs, and all the animals eat cereals produced on the farm making our foods very short circuit. And we sell direct to local people.”

One of their innovations is a 24-hour self-service farm boutique. “Inside the shop, it is a set of lockers. You can see what is inside each one, and you add what you want to your virtual shopping trolley on the computer and once you’ve paid for it all, the doors open allowing you to take your purchases home. Most of the lockers are refrigerated because so much of the produce is fresh. But not all of them, because as well as our own produce, we also sell other locally produced foods.”

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The range available includes dairy produce (butter, cream, yoghurt, cheese), charcuterie (terrines, pâtés, hams, and sausages), foie gras, honey macarons, jars of ready-cooked dishes like Colombo de Porc and Cassoulet, sweet and savoury biscuits, nougat, and pasta, as well as their own eggs and meat.

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‘So easy and convenient’ 

Camille acknowledges that when buying direct, people appreciate having a personal relationship with their producers. “But there is always someone around during the day, refilling the lockers, cleaning, sorting out the till, talking to people...”

He says the idea is very popular. “People like being able to park right in front of the shop whenever they like. It is so easy and convenient. We also sell boxes of meat once a month. People order online and then come to collect their orders. We sell to a few local hotels and restaurants too, and we sell at the Sunday morning market.”

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The couple are branching out into other crops including potatoes, beetroot and other vegetables, helped by their enthusiastic son Louis (8). “When we get round to it, we will also get organised for selling online using ‘Chronofresh’,” he says.

Check their website and social media for the date of their open day.