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How Much Does It Cost to Open a Paris Baguette Franchise?

The global bakery cafe franchise presents an opportunity to break into the booming fast-casual industry, starting at just $652,565.

By Morgan Wood1851 Franchise Contributor
SPONSOREDUpdated 4:16PM 09/28/23

With over 4,000 bakery cafés around the world, Paris Baguette is a quickly growing franchise concept that is dominating the $17-plus billion U.S. bakery café space with its made-fresh cakes, breads and pastries, customizable coffee drinks and wholesome grab-and-go offerings. The brand differentiates itself from other bakeries in the space that have shifted toward a convenience-first model and have baked goods delivered and heated in-store rather than baking everything in-house.

“The Paris Baguette franchise opportunity is a great way for owners to break into an in-demand industry with a unique product offering and guest experience,” said Eric Lavinder, chief development officer. “With an initial investment starting in the mid $600K range, franchisees can bring an experience like no other to their local communities and are poised to capture a large portion of the market, preparing them to scale with the brand long-term and build a lucrative, fulfilling business.”

Before Paris Baguette took off in the U.S., the market was desperately lacking in the space. Now, more communities are learning of the brand and yearning for it to come to their own markets as the franchisor works with passionate local owners to backfill the gap. With over 60 new franchise agreements finalized during the first half of this year, the franchise continues along a strong upward trajectory as it works to establish 1,000 U.S. units by 2030.

So, How Much Does the Paris Baguette Franchise Opportunity Cost?

The total initial investment required to begin the operation of a Paris Baguette bakery café is $652,565–$1,750,900. This includes $138,325–$170,000 that is paid to the franchisor. This includes the following costs:

  • Initial Franchise Fee: $50,000
  • Real Estate or Advance Rent and Security Deposit, other Prepaid Expenses and Costs: $10,000–$90,000
  • Building Costs, Leasehold Improvements: $250,000–$1,000,000
  • Equipment and Fixtures: $167,956–$242,800
  • Signs: $19,500–$49,000
  • Smallwares: $25,000–$30,000
  • Point of Sale System, Hardware, Software and Surveillance Equipment: $8,000–$14,500
  • Opening Inventory: $36,000–$48,000
  • Grand Opening Promotion: $10,000
  • Licenses, Permits, Fees and Deposits: $4,510–$18,710
  • Miscellaneous Expenses: $11,159–$16,500
  • Insurance: $3,405–$4,890
  • Attorney’s Fees and Business Consultants: $3,035–$7,500
  • Travel and Living Expenses While Training: $20,000–$65,000
  • Cost of Goods During Training: $4,000
  • Additional Funds (Three Months): $30,000–$100,000

Paris Baguette also offers Area Development agreements that require a minimum of four bakery cafés to be developed in a given geography. Area Developers pay a $20,000 development fee for each café that they plan to develop, then this amount is credited toward the initial franchise fee for each café developed. The total initial investment for each café opened under an Area Development Agreement is the same as that of a single unit agreement except for a $10,000 franchise fee reduction per café.

How Paris Baguette Is Different

While the business model of Paris Baguette certainly helps it to stand out among guests, the internal education and support available to franchisees creates a great ownership experience as they enter into business for themselves.

In order to maintain the level of product quality and guest experience Paris Baguette is known for, the franchisor understands that it needs to carefully train and consistently support its owners. In addition to weeks-long pre-opening training, franchisees are put in contact with mentors within the system who have already navigated the experience and receive ongoing corporate support to maintain strong marketing efforts, a beneficial labor model and interesting seasonal offerings to draw guests in.

“Franchisees come to Paris Baguette because no one is offering a bakery café experience like we are,” said Lavinder. “When you look at some of our would-be competitors, neither the guest experience nor franchisee experience stacks up.”

As it continues to grow its footprint in the U.S., Paris Baguette is looking to expand in Orlando and Tampa, Florida; Scottsdale, Arizona; Houston, Dallas, Austin and San Antonio, Texas; Raleigh and Charlotte, North Carolina; and South Carolina.

The total investment to franchise with Paris Baguette ranges from $652,565 to $1,750,900 including a $50,000 franchise fee. To find out more information on costs to buy this franchise, please visit https://parisbaguette.com/franchising/ or https://1851franchise.com/parisbaguette.

*This brand is a paid partner of 1851 Franchise. For more information on paid partnerships please click here.

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