The 1st Culinary Bloggers Festival at the Folies Bergère

Arriving at the Théâtre des Folies Bergère

I arrived around 9:15 a.m. with my blogger friend Séverine (from the blog Délices et Pâtisseries). The venue is breathtaking — you’re immediately blown away the moment you walk in. We were given our badges (I’ve always loved that little detail ^^), dropped off our coats and got the party started with a convivial coffee (juice, in my case) and a few treats. I’d already had breakfast but there was a bit of everything for those who hadn’t had time. I got my bearings — it felt quite magical to be there! I very quickly spotted other bloggers and we chatted while waiting for the first talk. Amina from the blog Sugardises also joined us. The trio was finally together 🙂

The start of the talks

“Monetising your audience” by Emmanuel Vivier, co-founder of the Hubinstitute and hubforum

The first talk was at 10 a.m. I really enjoyed it — very informative. Clearly, and without any surprise, it’s not really possible to make a living from your blog. But if it has a sufficient audience, there are several ways to earn a little money — enough to cover blog-related costs (the domain name, for instance) or even, why not, the expenses tied to the recipes you make.

For my part, I’m not in favour of ad banners that “pollute” the blog (that’s just my opinion), but it also depends on how many ads are on the page. One small ad doesn’t bother me, but when there are banners everywhere (top, bottom and sides) plus popups, I personally go elsewhere. It’s all about balance 😉 By the way, a funny coincidence: the day after the festival, I was contacted by an ad network to put advertising on my blog. What a coincidence! I didn’t even know what an “ad network” was before this talk.

Ultimately, running and maintaining a blog is a matter of motivation, sharing, connection and passion. In any case, I know that’s why I opened mine.

“15 new food storytelling formats” by Corentin Orsini, consulting director at Soon Soon Soon

Then it was Corentin’s turn to speak. I have to admit I enjoyed this talk a little less. Corentin was slightly less at ease, but above all, food trends don’t really interest me.

A short break before the next talk, and souvenir photos.

“Creating inspiring images” by Jean-Luc Abraïni, food photographer, and Carole Claden, food stylist

I was really looking forward to this talk. I love food photography and I’m trying to learn to use my DSLR in new ways. I’ve read (and re-read) 2 books I particularly enjoy on the subject, but I still find it very hard to put all the tips, tricks and advice into practice. It’s not that simple, and it does require a fair amount of equipment — both photography gear and “props”, those accessories that help showcase a dish.

Jean-Luc Abraïni and Carole Claden work together. They explained the tricks of their trade. It is admittedly quite far from our everyday blogger reality, I found. They even asked us whether we eat the dishes we photograph!! The answer seems obvious. I think any self-respecting blogger cooks to make others happy or to please themselves, and that involves tasting — food photography or not. In their line of work, you have to understand that photos are a full-blown production. They use all sorts of tricks to make things look beautiful, but in the end the dish itself is inedible: undercooked food, use of lacquer… (yes — a food stylist’s kit contains a whole range of bathroom accessories).

That said, this talk was very interesting. The only downside in my view — one that could have been a real highlight — was the live demonstration of shooting a dish (a burger and its side salad). The idea was excellent, as we had the chance to watch them work. In practice, the demo proved very complicated due to the technical conditions of the shoot (a tiny workspace for Carole who was “cooking”, awkward equipment setup for Jean-Luc, and a presenter who was extremely rushed). In normal circumstances it takes them a few hours to complete a shoot — they tried to do it in 20 minutes. So inevitably…

Lunch and the speed meeting

It was lunchtime and everything was taken care of. Lunch boxes were provided (4 different types) with a sandwich, a salad, a bottle of water and a piece of fruit. But this moment was also dedicated to the partner brands, as a “speed meeting” was organised — an opportunity for brands and bloggers to connect and discuss potential projects together. Here is a list of the brands present:

Priméale, Very, Parmentine, Sodastream, Festival des pains, Larrère agriculture durable, BelVita (LU), Absolue, Jardin Bio’, Karéléa, Toscoro, Les frères Cherblanc, Jean Larnaudie, Café Royal, Maxwell house, Bridélice, Grand’Mère pâte d’Alsace, Saint Agur, Mythic burger, La boîte à pizza, Ayam, Libre e’spritz, Albert Bartlett rooster pommes de terre, Choudou, Kettle chips, Sud-Primeurs, Roquefort « Société », Cœur’de pom, Bavaria 0.0%, Caprices des Anges, Zuegg.

I had imagined the speed meeting would be like speed dating. Far from it! Interested bloggers took to the stage with a microphone — 1 minute to pitch their ideas and make their case. Enough to scare anyone! I hadn’t signed up, and thankfully — there’s no way I could have got up on stage!

Here’s a funny anecdote: while I was quietly eating my sandwich and a partner brand representative had taken the floor (Lucie, project manager for Gavottes biscuits, pictured above), I heard my name. She asked me to come closer so we could chat. I was completely gobsmacked — I had no idea how she got my name since I hadn’t signed up for anything in particular. It turned out that among the 200 bloggers, she had chosen 3 of us (including me and Séverine, my fellow blogger friend). The blog name had caught her eye and she had visited it and liked what she saw. How lovely! 🙂

The MySaveur casting

The day was also punctuated by the MySaveur TV casting, whose aim was to discover talented food presenters. 3 minutes to convince and try your hand at presenting recipes on a real TV set. The prize: hosting a show on MySaveur TV.

The last talk: secrets behind successful blogs

“Sharing the secrets behind successful blogs” with Mercotte (La cuisine de Mercotte) and Bernard Laurance (La cuisine de Bernard)

2 p.m. I think everyone had been looking forward to this moment with great anticipation. Mercotte and Bernard together to tell their stories and how their blogs became the successes they are. I adore these two — equally. I had already had the chance to meet Bernard at a book signing for his first book, but I was seeing Mercotte for the first time and I was over the moon. They are both absolutely A-DOR-ABLE! What a joy to hear them talk about themselves, their journey, their blog… with such passion and simplicity. Bernard is a real chatterbox — I took such pleasure listening to him — and Mercotte is extraordinarily kind. They don’t take themselves seriously and haven’t let it go to their heads despite millions of views on their respective blogs.

The award reveal

But this festival was also an opportunity to spot and reward the best talents across several categories. There were over 400 applicants for 1 winner per category.

• Best food blog recipe of 2015: awarded to Sabrina from « Mes douceurs » for her recipe « Stone Vanille, insert crème brûlée Tonka gelée de Myrtille » (I’ve tried her recipe, here, and I fully endorse it. She could just as easily have won the best photo award ^^)
• Best food blog photo of 2015: awarded to Juliette from « Les recettes de Juliettes » for her aubergine, pea and mint chaussons
• Best food blog article of 2015: awarded to Raphaële from « En rang d’oignons » for her article « Christophe Saintagne, de la cuisine en Saint-Laurent »
• Best new food blog of 2015: awarded to « Elo dans la farine »

The results came in late afternoon: I knew I had no chance of winning a prize, and yet I still felt a slight twinge of nerves at the announcement 😉

The day was drawing to a close; there were already far fewer people, which was the perfect opportunity to ask Mercotte and Bernard for one last photo. Throughout the day, a small booth had been set up specially for striking a pose and keeping a memento of this wonderful day. We made the most of it right to the end 😉

The cherry on the cake: we didn’t leave empty-handed — several bags were waiting for us, filled with gifts generously offered by the partner brands. We were truly spoiled! It was lucky that Séverine and I had come by car, because it would have been an ordeal carrying it all if I’d taken public transport.

To wrap up: it was a truly wonderful day! We were really looked after! Thank you to Willy Mansion and everyone who played a part, near or far, in organising this first festival. Thank you also to the partner brands — and see you next year, for sure!