Abstract
The creation of Picard in France coincides with the beginning of frozen food in the USA but the technology in France was far from being as advanced. Therefore, in 1906, Raymond Picard created “les Glacières de Fontainebleau”, begun by manufacturing and by delivering blocks of ice which allowed to keep food and drinks for the cool in the iceboxes of cafes, restaurants and private individuals.
In 1962 “les Glacières de Fontainebleau” became « les Établissements Picard ». This change translated the evolution of the activity with the wholesale of basic frozen products, such as minced beef and spinach. But besides the frozen products, Picard also marketed freezers.
In 1973, Armand Decelle acquired the company to Fernand Picard and from that moment, it was the real birth of Picard. In this time, the company counted a dozen persons and realized a 5 million franc turnover (760 000 €) with 5 delivery vans. The following year, Armand Decelle opened the first store "freezer center ", Rome Street in Paris which proposed then 400 products.
