In a concession to the sometimes rather forced 'coolness' that permeates the brand, the 37-year-old Frenchman has, however, rolled his sleeves up. It is perhaps a sign of things to come at the ethical food and drink brand, which now counts Coca-Cola, a corporation that many consumers might view as the antithesis of its values, as a significant minority shareholder.
Delabriere, who has been at Innocent only since March, is gushing in his praise for his new charge. 'When I discovered the brand six years ago, I thought it was fantastic - in terms of the product, the communication, interaction with consumers - and six years later, it's the same,' he says. He claims to be equally taken with England. 'I'm really in love with this country,' says the Parisian, who, unlike many of his compatriots, admits to enjoying British food and drink. 'What I love about this country is that if you see a map of France and the UK, they are very close, but from a cultural standpoint, they are two completely different worlds.'
Delabriere has already made his mark on Innocent by calling an advertising review - the work was previously created in-house - and cancelling its annual Village Fete experiential event. He plans to double the brand's adspend this year from the paltry £1.5m it spent in 2008, a fraction of its PepsiCo-owned rival Tropicana's budget.
The key to Innocent's success, according to Delabriere, is an understanding of the value of brand advocates. 'Something I love about this company is that I've never seen such a close relation-ship with consumers,' he says, with characteristic hyperbole. 'When a consumer calls the banana phone [Innocent's customer line], after three rings, if it isn't answered, it will go through to anyone on the team.' Certainly Innocent has been a pioneer in its use of its blog and social media tools such as Twitter to get consumers engaged with the brand.
Delabriere himself began to hone his ability to connect with consumers when he took a role in FMCG sales after graduating from university. 'I started work for Unilever as a sales rep, selling detergents in the east of France, but I loved it,' he says.
'It's one of the best experiences I've ever had and I learned a lot from negotiating with customers.'
Subsequent jobs at Danone, where he worked as a marketing manager at its HP Foods UK subsidiary, specifically on its HP and Daddies Sauce ranges, helped Delabriere understand the sometimes quirky nature of UK food brands. In fact, while at Danone, he heard the HP brand described as 'weird' and 'very British' and admits that at first he, too, found things slightly strange. 'Being French, it was quite a cultural shock, and for the first few months I worked like a dog - I had to learn about you guys,' he says.
This ability to adapt and work within big organisations will doubtless prove useful in the future, given Coca-Cola's recent arrival on the scene.
Delabriere says he was aware of the impending deal prior to signing his contract, and knows that Innocent has attracted some criticism for agreeing to the deal. Nonetheless, he insists that the brand will hold its own. 'I respect everyone's opinions, but nothing is going to change - there will be the same people [at Innocent] tomorrow doing the same things, and the same values,' he says. 'Of course, we have had some views from consumers, but I don't see any major damage to the brand - the Coke deal is a fantastic opportunity for us to be even more Innocent.'
Delabriere is undoubtedly keen for the brand to stay true to Innocent's three core pillars of communication - health benefits, value, and innovation. 'There are amazing health benefits in just one small bottle and the price of a one-litre carton has remained the same for the past seven years, despite increases in the price of fruit and veg,' he says. 'Innocent is very much about giving people the opportunity to have healthy, tasty products.'
Recent NPD and innovation has attempted to move Innocent away from its original smoothie offering. Last year, the brand launched its first food product, Veg Pots, while last month it unveiled the children's fruit-snack line, Squeezies.
Although Delabriere remains tight-lipped about plans for further new products, he is known as a pursuer of innovation. At his previous job at PepsiCo, where he was marketing director at Walkers, he was behind the recent launch of the premium crisp brand, Red Sky. Last year he was also responsible for the revival of Monster Munch. 'There is a lot of nostalgia around the brand, which goes back 20 years, but over time much of this was lost. What we did was relaunch the old Monster Munch, with the big monsters, big shape and great seasonings,' he says.
Further evidence of this bold approach to brand strategy comes from his time at HP Foods. He was partly responsible for snooker player Jimmy White's temporary name-change to Jimmy Brown to promote HP Sauce for the Masters Championships in 2005, which generated an enormous amount of PR and incremental sales.
'The BBC said that if he changed his name, they would still call him Jimmy White. So he did an interview with The Sun saying that if the BBC commentators did not call him by his new name, he would refuse to play,' explains Delabriere. 'We had a massive peak in audience, and Jimmy White, well, he played and he lost, but beyond the fun and excitement it had a positive impact on sales.'
Delabriere is certainly in the perfect working atmosphere to have a little fun. However, he must be mindful of criticism that the founders have 'sold out' by taking the Coca-Cola shilling, as well as fears that, as a discretionary purchase, its core smoothies offering is more exposed than many food and drink brands to the effects of the recession. Innocent will have to work hard to win some consumers back.
There is little doubt that its new ties with Coca-Cola will improve Innocent's potential for expanding across the globe, as well as fuelling NPD. The challenge is balancing this influence, as Delabriere tacitly acknowledges. 'Innocent has a specific voice and we have to stay true to it - it's a mix of proximity, quirkiness,' he says. 'It's close to consumers, and we have to stay true to who we are.'