the Brooklyn Fizz Story

Family owned and operated

The first thing you need to know about Brooklyn Fizz is that it's a family business.
Quite literally: grocer Jean-Charles and grocer Héloïse are married. They met in high school.
Figuratively speaking: first-time grocers Manuel, Arnaud and Jean-Charles got to know each other just as the Bulls were winning their 2nd Three-Peat, and Arsenik were releasing "Une Affaire de Famille"
Although they still have many years to go before they can claim retirement, the next generation is already assured. It's highly likely that you've already met the Junior grocer who wants to serve customers at the counter when you come in on a Wednesday lunchtime.

The beginnings

The entrepreneurial adventure began in 2011, when the grocers, who had just returned from yet another trip to the United States, decided they needed a donut to start the day off right.
Demanding as they were (and still are), they didn't want to settle for the frozen doughnuts you find everywhere. So they decided to do something about it.
Their market research boiled down to one line: "We can't be the only ones who want to eat good donuts, so this will work!".
As you can imagine, bankers didn't take kindly to this financial approach.
So they put all their savings into creating a store dedicated solely to making and selling donuts: Hello Brooklyn was born.
The store, where you could see them making donuts every morning, was located in Lyon's first arrondissement, down the slopes from the Croix-Rousse, at 14 rue Romain.
They were right on the money, not only because they finally had more doughnuts than they could eat, but also because the Lyon public responded so well to the project.
At the time, grocers only sold their wonderful donuts, and a few drinks.

Importing American food products

In 2014, still keen to rediscover and eat typically American products, they decided it was time to import sweets, drinks and savoury products that could only be found in the USA: the American grocery store was born!
After months of preparation (importing is no easy task), they received their first U.S. products: Reese's, Hershey's Chocolate bars, beef jerky, Cereals Lucky Charmsbeverages (Snapple, Root Beer)... and they opened their online sales site, which is where you are now.
Los Angeles wasn't built in a day.
They had to eat a lot of unsold stock, because supply didn't always match demand.
Take the famous Root Beer, for example: while it's a very popular drink among Americans, its taste leaves many (if not most) of our compatriots stunned. And when consumption dates approached, the grocers were happy to empty the stock...
But once again, the public was there, and with sales of products on their website increasing by the day, they were able to expand in 2015 and open a much larger boutique in the center of Lyon, at 17 rue Childebert, a stone's throw from rue de la république. This new boutique enables them to offer all their American products for sale, as well as their donuts, and even to let you try some wonderful hot dogs (with pure beef sausage, just like over there!) at lunchtime!
You can also try 100% U.S. Slushies from Slush Puppies, milkshakes, excellent coffees, cappuccinos, hot chocolates, fresh lemonades and homemade ice-teas!

Caps, jerseys & a passion for U.S. sports

The grocers have always grown up with a passion for American sports. Grocer Arnaud, for example, had a life-size poster of Hakeem Olajuwon (basketball player of the Houston Rockets) in his room, and grocer Jean-Charles never parted with his Starter cap of the San José Sharks field hockey team.
If they spent ¾ of their youth on their skateboards, the remaining ¼ they watched VHS of NBA games. I'm talking about a time when modems made noise the moment they connected to the internet.
In fact, it was thanks to the Internet that they were able to buy their first New Era caps. Imported from the U.S., they waited 2 months before receiving them, wondering every day if there had been a problem with customs!
Time passed, and their collections of NBA, NFL, MLB and NHL memorabilia grew as trips across the Atlantic multiplied.

As soon as they felt Brooklyn Fizz was on the right track, they thought they could take it to the next level, and offer their customers a new range of products that were sorely lacking in France.
And so, after doughnuts and U.S. food products, they began to offer caps, jerseys, balls, t-shirts from American sports franchises... the aim being to satisfy fans of all teams, and not just the famous NY caps of the Yankees or L.A. Dodgers.

Today, the Brooklyn Fizz family is made up of 6 people, divided between managing the store and the website! Don't hesitate to get in touch with them and drop in to see them in their Lyonnais boutique, they'll be delighted to help!