Mont-de-Marsan: from the carriage to the tires, the Pédarré family saga can be read like a historical novel

The iconic Mons-based company, which is organizing a major celebration for its 150th anniversary this Saturday, September 20, at the Plumaçon Arena, is enjoying modest success. Bernard and Nicolas Pédarré, father and son, have opened their archives to "Sud Ouest."

Iron red-hot from the flames, and the irresistible urge to approach the mouth of the fire to have his fingertip bitten off. Bernard Pédarré replayed this original scene throughout his childhood with his grandfather, Maurice. "Lighting the fire in the morning was quite a ceremony! I can still see him with his enormous bellows, I wanted to touch it, it was fascinating!" the dashing octogenarian still enthuses. We are here in the world of wheelwrights, wood, and metal.

Because long before the sale of tires, the Pédarré family, originally from Nay in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques, built and repaired horse-drawn carriages. It was Jean-Baptiste, known as Saturnin, who launched the business in 1875, in the heart of the Moun region. "My great-grandfather was the fourth of eight children. His parents were farmers. At 14, he announced to them that he was leaving. That will mean one less mouth to feed, he told them! It was abject poverty. And he left to join his guild." Pédarré buggies were sold as far away as Brittany.

The first development took place in 1933, when Maurice Pédarré, the founder's son, announced to his future successor, Camille, that they were going to start selling tires. "My father cried!" assures Bernard Pédarré. Highly resourceful, Camille Pédarré, the third generation of the name, managed to keep the company going during the Second World War.

"My father had a gas-fired truck, he went to Michelin to get tires, he was able to repair all of Aquitaine!" admires his son. "He embodied extraordinary know-how and the value of work, which is an overused word in our time. He put people at the center of everything. He was kindness itself, with exceptional charisma." The Pédarré company then had around twenty employees. At the same time, it became inseparable from the Stade Montois Rugby, of which Camille Pédarré took over as president in 1946, and for thirty years.

While raving about his father, Bernard Pédarré describes himself as a "not very gifted and self-conscious" student, light years away from his two brothers who attended prestigious schools, Centrale and Les Mines. "My childhood friend is Alain Juppé. I can tell you that in class, he was always top of the class, and I never was!"

The former Prime Minister, born in Mont-de-Marsan , is expected this Saturday, September 20, at the Plumaçon arenas, to celebrate the Pédarré saga, alongside Geneviève Darrieussecq, Charles Dayot, Boris Vallaud, but also around forty members of the extended Pédarré family, and around a hundred guests.

Having joined the family business at the age of 20, Bernard Pédarré didn't end up in an office. "I started at the bottom, and it was the same for my son, Nicolas." Until his retirement in 2007, he laid the foundations for the company's regional reach, which today has 160 employees and nine agencies spread across the Landes, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, and Hautes-Pyrénées regions.

It was Nicolas Pédarré who brought the company's exponential growth to fruition through multiple acquisitions and strategic diversification of its activities. "When I saw the arrival of pure players, selling tires online, I understood that we were going to die if we only did that. It was a turning point; we started doing vehicle maintenance," explains the current CEO.

With its 24-hour breakdown assistance policy, Pédarré is entrusted by carriers with the maintenance of large truck fleets. Its numerous agricultural and forestry clients are equally responsive. This industrial activity represents 60% of its turnover (compared to 40% for the light vehicle segment) and is booming. Pédarré is therefore eyeing the Lot-et-Garonne region and could establish itself there quickly.

"My childhood friend is Alain Juppé. In class, he was always first, and I never was!"

What is the reason for this success? "It's not ambition, you have to know how to surround yourself with the right people," replies Nicolas Pédarré. The man who advises Jean-Robert Cazeaux at Stade Montois Rugby cultivates a sense of teamwork and humility. "The technicians taught me everything. I did about fifteen internships in Clermont-Ferrand, at Michelin. I loved fitting truck tires," he recalls. Naturally, his son Paul, 25, joined the family adventure. "He went to business school, he already understands certain things faster than me." Transmission and adaptation, two virtues that forge a vision.