Featured App: Guilde Intl des Fromagers
Guilde Intl des Fromagers is the official app of the New World Chapter of the Guilde Internationale des Fromagers, the international society that honors the people who make, ripen, sell and champion fine cheese. The app brings chapter news, induction ceremonies, events and the member directory together on the phone for members in Australia, Canada, Mexico and the United States, and it is built with AppPresser.
In this featured app spotlight, we take a closer look at the guild behind the app, what the app does, who it serves, and why it is such a strong example of what happens when a WordPress site and a mobile app work together.
Who Is Behind the New World Chapter of the Guilde Internationale des Fromagers
The Guilde Internationale des Fromagers was founded in 1969 in Dijon, France, by Pierre Androuët, a celebrated French affineur and cheesemonger whose Paris cheese shops bore his name and who wrote several well known books on cheese. Androuët created two linked bodies: the Guilde, for dairy professionals dedicated to preserving standards in cheesemaking around the world, and the Confrérie de Saint Uguzon, for chefs, restaurateurs, food scientists, food journalists and other experts who share that knowledge. Its official mission is “to transmit knowledge through cheese companionship.” The New World Chapter is online at guildedesfromagers.us.
The Confrérie takes its name from Saint Uguzon, also known as San Lucio, a shepherd from the Cavargna valley near Lugano who, as the chapter tells it, gave the cheese he made to those in need and is honored today as the patron saint of cheesemakers. Since 1992, the international guild has been led by Roland Barthélemy, a Paris cheesemonger and affineur whose official title is Provost.
North Americans have been part of the guild for decades. The chapter’s history records John Ciano as the first American inducted by Pierre Androuët, in 1973, followed by Steve Jenkins and Ed Edelman, but those early members had to be inducted through chapters in France, Germany and Italy. As American artisan cheese grew, so did the guild’s presence. A 2010 induction in the Pacific Northwest, according to the international guild, was the first time citizens of the United States were recognized at the Ambassadeur level.
The New World Chapter itself was officially inaugurated on January 16, 2012, in San Francisco during the Fancy Food Show, with Roland Barthélemy presiding. The chapter credits Cathy Strange of Whole Foods Market, David Gremmels of Rogue Creamery, Will Studd of Will Studd Enterprises and Jennifer Bridges for making it happen. Today Cathy Strange, Whole Foods Market’s longtime global cheese buyer and one of the first Americans inducted into the guild, serves as President of the guild for Australia, Canada, Mexico and the United States. The guild’s ranks include Protectors, Ambassadors, Masters and Judges, its members wear ceremonial robes and medallions, and membership comes only by nomination from a sitting member and approval by the board. The app is published by Project A, Inc.
What the Guilde Intl des Fromagers App Does
The app turns the chapter’s website into a pocket guide to the guild. It opens on a Home screen with the New World Chapter crest, a group photo of robed members and the latest Chapter News, and a slide out menu leads to every other part of the chapter’s world.
Inside the app, members and friends of the guild can find:
- Chapter News, with announcements of induction ceremonies and the professionals recognized at each one.
- Induction coverage, with photos and the names of each new honoree.
- Cheese Focus stories, which spotlight cheese shops and businesses connected to the guild.
- Events, with upcoming inductions and gatherings from the chapter calendar.
- The member directory, which the chapter says doubles as a who’s who of the artisanal cheese industry.
- Guild background, including its history, its Diversity, Equity and Inclusion statement, application forms and contact information.
What makes the app distinctive is the community it represents. The guild describes itself as a group of the most tenured, influential and well connected people in the world of cheese, and its news reads like a record of the craft: cheesemakers, mongers, importers, distributors and retailers honored at ranks such as Garde et Juré, Compagnon and Maître Honoris Caseus.
The chapter’s website had promised members an app that works on both Android and Apple devices, and Guilde Intl des Fromagers delivered on that promise in June 2024.
App Screenshots
Here is a look at the app. Use the arrows or the numbered buttons to move through the screenshots.
Test Drive the App
The best way to understand Guilde Intl des Fromagers is to try it. Download the app on iPhone, iPad or Android, open the latest Chapter News, and see who the guild has honored most recently.
Key Features That Stand Out
Home
The Home screen sets the tone right away. It shows the New World Chapter crest with Saint Uguzon at its center, a photo of robed members of the Guilde Internationale des Fromagers, and the newest Chapter News directly below. It makes the app feel like the chapter’s front door.
Chapter News
Chapter News keeps members current on inductions, honorees and accomplishments. Each story opens with a photo, such as the guild’s striped ribbons and medallions, and a headline that names where the ceremony took place. The chapter encourages members to send ideas and articles, so the news stays relevant to everyone.
Directory
The member directory is the benefit inductees value most, according to the chapter. It helps professionals in Australia, Canada, Mexico and the United States stay in contact with one another after their induction. Alongside it, a searchable News list lets members look back through past ceremonies and Cheese Focus stories.
At a Glance
- The official app of the New World Chapter of the Guilde Internationale des Fromagers.
- The guild was founded in 1969 in Dijon, France, by Pierre Androuët.
- The New World Chapter was inaugurated in San Francisco on January 16, 2012.
- It serves members in Australia, Canada, Mexico and the United States.
- Chapter news, induction ceremonies, events and a member directory.
- Published by Project A, Inc.
- Available on iPhone, iPad and Android since June 2024.
- Built with AppPresser.
Who Guilde Intl des Fromagers Serves
The app is built first for inducted members of the New World Chapter. These are cheesemakers, affineurs, cheesemongers, importers, distributors, retailers and buyers who have been honored for their commitment to traditional cheese. For them, the app is a way to follow new inductions, see which colleagues have been recognized and stay connected across great distances.
It also serves the wider cheese community. Chefs, restaurateurs, food writers and food scientists are part of the guild’s tradition through the Confrérie, and the chapter’s news and Cheese Focus stories give anyone who cares about artisan cheese a look at the people shaping the craft in the New World.
It also gives people who hope to join one day a clear picture of what the guild values: knowledge, quality, education and generosity in sharing a love of cheese.
Technology Behind the App
The Guilde app is powered by the chapter’s own WordPress site, guildedesfromagers.us.
The app is built from WordPress, and WordPress drives it. Events, news and members live on the WordPress site, and AppPresser carries that content straight into the app, so updates made on the site show up in the app without a separate system to manage.
Looking at the site itself, these are the platforms behind the experience:
WordPress, the foundation for the chapter’s website. WordPress is the open source content management system that powers more websites than any other platform.
Beaver Builder with the Beaver Builder theme and PowerPack, for design. Beaver Builder is a drag and drop page builder for WordPress.
The Events Calendar and Events Calendar Pro, for events. The Events Calendar is a widely used WordPress events plugin.
Ultimate Member, for the member directory.
Smart Slider 3 Pro, behind the site’s image sliders. Smart Slider 3 is a WordPress slider plugin for building responsive slideshows.
GTranslate, for languages. GTranslate is a WordPress translation plugin.
AppPresser, which turns the WordPress site into the mobile app. AppPresser is a mobile app builder that creates native iOS and Android apps from a WordPress site.
What Guilde Intl des Fromagers Shows About AppPresser
Guilde Intl des Fromagers shows how AppPresser can turn a WordPress organization site into a polished member app. The chapter already publishes its news, events and directory on WordPress, and the app carries that content straight to members’ phones, so a new induction story appears in the app without any extra publishing work.
It also shows how well AppPresser fits small, specialized communities. A guild with members in four countries does not need a large development team to offer a branded app on iPhone, iPad and Android. It needs its existing website and the right tools to bring it to mobile.
For associations, societies and professional guilds, the lesson is clear: an app can keep a scattered community in touch and give old traditions a modern home.
Guilde Intl des Fromagers in the Press
The guild and its New World Chapter have drawn attention in the dairy trade press. In July 2023, the U.S. Dairy Export Council’s U.S. Dairy Exporter blog reported that the New World Chapter had honored Angélique Hollister, the council’s Senior Vice President of Global Cheese Marketing, with the title of Garde et Juré, protector of the craft of cheesemaking, at a ceremony at The French Cheese Board in New York City. The article described the chapter’s role in recognizing outstanding artisans, mongers and cheese professionals and explained that induction requires nomination by a sitting member and approval by the board.
Congratulations to Cathy Strange, the members of the New World Chapter of the Guilde Internationale des Fromagers and Project A on building an app that keeps a worldwide community of cheese professionals connected, informed and proud of their craft. We are proud to have AppPresser behind it.
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