Upmarket bakery chain Le Pain Quotidien hits out at influencer who wanted €2,000 to film 'themselves having our coffee'

An upmarket bakery chain has hit out at an influencer who demanded €2,000 to promote their business.Belgian cafe Le Pain Quotidien took to its social media accounts to show footage of its senior executive Frank Gysbrechts, 58, enjoying a beverage and a chocolate-covered sweet treat at one of its locations in Brussels.The company, which has a location in St. Pancras International, explained in the clip's text: 'An influencer wanted us to pay €2,000 to film themselves having our profiterole and coffee... so here's our Global CFO doing it for free.' The tongue-in-cheek caption added: 'Our CFO is all about PROFITerol.'Shared on Saturday, the post went down a treat with many of the bakery's customers, who said they were 'tired of influencers anyway' and praised the executive for doing a 'great job'.Even English model Kelly Brook chimed in, adding: 'I'm here for this authentic content!'F1 star George Russell's fiancée, Carmen Montero Mundt, who boasts one million followers, added: 'I support this post.'However, others declared all work 'deserves to be paid - including creators' work' as the comments section sparked a spirited discussion on the 'influencer recession' and 'organic marketing'.In 2023, the bakery was forced to close nine UK branches, leaving just one café remaining, after collapsing into administration.Belgian cafe Le Pain Quotidien took to their social media accounts to show footage of their senior executive Frank Gysbrechts, 58, enjoying a beverage and a chocolate-covered sweet treat at one of its locations in Brussels The post was praised by many of the bakery's customers, who said they were 'tired of influencers anyway' and praised the executive for doing a 'great job'.Mr Gysbrechts has an impressive resume; before joining Le Pain Quotidien (French for 'the daily bread') in 2023, he worked at Belgian self-service restaurant chain Lunch Garden and cable company Telenet. But the brand's followers joked he was just as adept at content marketing after Le Pain Quotidien's video of him earned over 4.5 million views on Instagram. The clip was filmed at one of the cafe's locations in Brussels and depicted Mr Gysbrechts taking a big bite of the pastry before washing it down with a sip of his brew. 'Great career switch,' one person commented under the video, while another added: 'Any good CFO would jump on that cost savings.' Model and philanthropist Noreen Goodwin wrote: 'So here’s the rub. If an influencer had filmed this, I would have deliberately not had a coffee there out of principle & I hate a grifter. 'Because you have been unique/funny and you’re not giving my money to influencers, I’m going to have a coffee with you & pay for it. That’s how it works. Influencer marketing is not working - it’s having the opposite effect.' Some also drew comparisons with the viral video of McDonald's CEO Chris Kempczinski awkwardly nibbling on the burger chain's Big Arch offering earlier this year. Fans declared Mr Gysbrechts did a 'better job' promoting Le Pain Quotidien than Mr Kempczinski, whose clip was savaged by Burger King in a hilarious response video. Three years ago, Le Pain Quotidien was forced to close eight branches in London and one in Oxford after falling into administration in the UK.The only site unaffected by the closures was the outlet at St Pancras railway station, run by sister company SPQ Holdings Limited, which remains in operation today. CEO Annick Van Overstraeten confirmed the other branches shut on June 30, 2023 - making all staff redundant - after exploring 'every possible option' to try and rescue the business. It is understood this resulted in the loss of 250 jobs.Van Overstraeten said they are holding talks with potential partners in the UK for new franchises in cities, travel spots, and hotels.She appeared to blame Brexit for the collapse, saying it turned London into a 'very difficult market' where rent would take up an unsustainable 30 per cent of their budget. Three years ago, Le Pain Quotidien was forced to close eight branches in London and one in Oxford after falling into administration in the UK. The only site unaffected by the closures was the outlet at St Pancras railway station, run by sister company SPQ Holdings Limited, which remains in operation today.At the time, she told the Daily Mail that Le Pain Quotidien is 'steering its strategy with a more forceful focus on franchising in the UK, and elsewhere' and the brand is 'embarking on a new chapter' in the country. 'Now that the UK has left the European Union, Le Pain Quotidien will rely on its franchise model more than ever, as well as the know-how of local partners. Therefore, we are embarking on a new chapter in the UK,' her statement read. 'Our successful flagship store at Saint-Pancras station in London will continue to be our anchor there.'The other restaurants in the UK closed on June 30. We have explored every possible option to save the business but it has not been possible to rescue it.'Trading has therefore ceased, and unfortunately all staff has been made redundant.'Meanwhile, we are holding talks with potential partners in the UK for new franchises in cities, travel spots, and hotels.'Why stop the other restaurants in London? After Brexit, London has become a very difficult market: fewer people on the streets, higher wage costs, and a very rigid rental market, whereby rent takes up to 30 per cent of our budget. That is not sustainable, especially with the growth opportunities we see elsewhere.'By retaining our prime location in Saint-Pancras, we are sticking to London and the UK. We are looking at how we can take new steps in this challenging market in the near future with a local franchisee.'Why more focus on franchising? This is the foundation of Le Pain Quotidien's strategy to grow. This way of working with local partners works for us: local players know the local market best.'We have therefore decided to fully commit further to this model in the UK as it allows us to grow sustainably. For 2023, Le Pain Quotidien will be committed more than ever to franchising as the foundation of its strategy to grow in markets outside Belgium, especially outside the European Union. Currently, we are present in 15 countries and by the end of this year, five new ones will be added.'READ MORE: London's Borough Market BANS food influencers from filming at weekends after 'disrupting' stallholders with scathing online reviews READ MORE: Instagrammable cafe chain overrun by influencers is hit by a one-star hygiene rating - after causing outrage with £9.20 cake