For three generations, Tre Mari Bakery has brought Toronto’s St. Clair West neighbourhood a taste of Italy. From their selection of imported goods, fresh-baked pastries, hot food and more, the bakery is a one-stop taste of Italy.
Panettone is a sweet Italian bread typically enjoyed around Christmas. This past Christmas, Tre Mari began offering their own panettone imported directly from a family-owned manufacturer in Italy! Since they were receiving the panettone directly from the supplier, Franco knew he needed to find their perfect packaging fit.
We sat down with Franco Deleo, marketing manager (and oldest brother) to talk about their custom packaging journey with LeKAC. Read on to learn more!
About Tre Mari Bakery
Founded in 1960 by Franco’s grandparents, Tre Mari has built a large customer base with its strong history. In addition to baked goods and fresh pastries, the bakery also features a deli, hot food counter and a catering service! The bakery has been a staple in Toronto’s St. Clair West neighbourhood, bringing a taste of Italy to all of their customers!
Currently in its third generation of ownership, the shop is helmed by brothers Franco, John Paul, and Alessandro. Franco heads up marketing, John Paul is the bread master and Alessandro handles operations. Their mom AnnaMarie takes on the accounting role, keeping them in budget (though we hear she’s also trying to take on a more visible role in the bakery)! Together, the Deleo family carries on the Tre Mari vision while adding a contemporary twist!
The Panettone Problem
As longtime followers of Tre Mari (read: drooling over their social media posts), we were ecstatic to meet them at last year’s SIAL Canada trade show! Tre Mari has sold panettone from other brands in store, but this was the first year the Tre Mari panettone would hit shelves. The focus for this project was to create something convenient and easy to assemble. Franco also sought packaging that would make for a great host gift!
The Result
At SIAL, our custom square tulip cake box caught Franco’s eye. The box style features a handle and requires no adhesives for construction, which spoke to the convenience factor Franco was looking for. After narrowing down the box style, it was time for design! We sent a dieline for the tulip box in the appropriate dimensions, and the bakery’s preferred graphic designer got to work. The result was a contemporary design that still matched with their branding and other custom box!
Like LeKAC, green is Tre Mari’s signature colour. Franco provided our team with the bakery’s brand guide to ensure that we got the perfect match. This was of great importance, since they wanted the new packaging to fit alongside the cannoli box they already had! We considered using Pantone colours in the printing process to ensure complete colour accuracy, but ultimately didn’t need to! Prior to mass production, we received a sample of the panettone box for Tre Mari’s team to compare with their cannoli box (spoiler alert: they were a perfect match!).
Once they received their order, the Tre Mari marketing team began work on promoting their new panettone. They created a window display that put the panettone front and centre. Additionally, they added a golden ticket to one lucky panettone for a $50 bakery gift card and created a human-sized panettone photo op in store!
When we asked Franco what his favourite part of working with LeKAC was, he said it was our communication and our customer service!
I felt like there was such an honesty and genuine feeling of wanting to make us happy [and] i felt that the whole way through. It felt like “family business”–there was a care there that I felt.
Franco Deleo, Tre Mari Bakery
Ready to get started on your own custom packaging journey? Contact us today to learn how we can help!
What’s Next For Tre Mari?
Now that the holidays are over, whats’s next for Tre Mari? Franco hopes to expand their custom packaging selections for other bakery items, as well as expanding the house and home section of their storefront. He also hopes to do more fun marketing campaigns to engage the community!
Be sure to follow Tre Mari on Instagram to keep up to date with their latest offerings, or visit them in person to snag a freshly-made treat!
Tre Mari Bakery
416-654-8960
1311 St. Clair Ave W, Toronto, ON M6E 1C2
