La Vie Claire (company)

La Vie Claire is a French chain of health product stores. It sponsored one of the strongest cycling teams of all time called La Vie Claire with Bernard Hinault.[1]

Description

The company was founded by Henri-Charles Geffroy. The La Vie claire magazine he founded in 1946 to spread his ideas on healthy eating met with such success that, in 1948, he set up the very first French organic farming store in Paris, a cooperative to provide subscribers with "healthy food"[2] (in fact, it was to be the first store in the future Maisons de La Vie claire network).[3] In 1951, l'Aliment sain was founded, and the cooperative wound up. In 1965, this company became the Société française d'alimentation saine.[4]

In 1980, it was bought by Bernard Tapie with a 200 million francs turnover (30 million Euro) through 250 stores. In 1996, it generated only 10.6 million euros turnover with 120 stores. It was sold through Crédit Lyonnais (CDR) to Distriborg for 10 million francs.[5]

References

  1. Top 10 Best Road Cycle Racers of All Time 9 May 2009^
  2. Une histoire singulière lavieclaire.com, retrieved 21 August 2016^
  3. Olivier Lepiller. Le choix des aliments. Informations et pratiques alimentaires 2011, retrieved 21 August 2016^
  4. Association les Guides de la Nature, de la Vie et de la Santé. Biographie d'Henri-Charles Geffroy (1895-1981) retrieved 21 August 2016^
  5. Actualité économique^