Maille hits the road to connect with customers

Maille is aiming to connect with foodies and home chefs with a summer food fair tour.

The fine mustard brand is hosting The Maille Flavour Studio at Taste of Toronto (June 23-26), Vancouver’s Columbia StrEAT Food Truck Fest (Aug. 20) and Montreal’s YUL Eat (Sept. 3-5).

At each stop, headmaster mustard sommelier Harry Lalousis will teach 15-minute workshops on simple ways to incorporate mustard into meals. An hourly schedule will rotate between three workshops: sauces and dips; marinades and glazes; and vinaigrettes.

The Maille Flavour Studio builds on the success of last year’s pop-up shop experience, Maille Bistro.

“We chose to be at festivals this year because we want to meet our target consumer: the foodies—people who want to learn more about food and new products,” said Marie-Eve Brunet, brand manager of Montreal-based I-D Foods, which distributes Maille in Canada. “We’re a premium brand, so the reach of those festivals is really the right one for Maille.”

In addition to the workshops, a pop-up shop will feature mustard on tap, as well as products not typically found in supermarkets.

The mustard-on-tap experience is typically reserved for customers of Les Maison Maille standalone boutiques in Paris, Dijon, London and New York.

“We want to offer the opportunity to experience the Maille products at a level that’s not possible in their day-to-day shopping in the supermarkets,” said Brunet.

With Maille’s heritage dating back to 1747, Brunet said it was hard to share the full story of the brand and its quality products with traditional marketing.

For example, “with Dijon mustard, there are different products out there, but having a quality product really can make a difference in your meal,” said Brunet. “And for that, you need some time. You need to interact with consumers and get them to understand.”