Ten Years In, Le Macaron Continues to Treat U.S. Customers to a Taste of France

“This country had everything – except a good macaron,” Le Macaron founder and CEO Rosalie Guillem said of the United States upon moving to Florida from France in 2002.

By 2009, her craving for the simple, elegant pastry had become so strong that when her daughter, Audrey, decided to join her in America, her next business move was clear: bring the taste of France she’d been missing to her new home of Sarasota by opening a café where macarons were the signature product.

Aided by the pre-Instagram yet decidedly photo-worthy displays that did a great job of drawing customers in the door, the word about Le Macaron quickly spread. Suddenly, Rosalie and Audrey’s macarons were in demand to the point that customers were visiting their café from two to three hours away just for a taste. It was then Rosalie knew she had found her niche, so she and Audrey set out to expand the concept to markets beyond Sarasota.

Recalling the early days of their initial store, Rosalie said, “Customers were drawn by our beautiful, colorful displays, but had no clue what a macaron was. We determined that the best way to explain it was to give them a sample—people loved it every time and would immediately place an order. From one sample, they were hooked.”

Franchise growth

In the decade since, response has been incredible—Le Macaron has grown to more than 50 locations across 11 states in the form of both kiosks and café concepts. And with an authentic French offering that is as beautiful as it is delicious, it’s no wonder Le Macaron is expanding nationally through franchising.

To keep its product authentic and on par with French standards, Le Macaron employs a professional French pastry chef who has perfected each and every one of the brand’s proprietary macaron recipes and supplies all locations with their products from a specialty kitchen in Sarasota, the ultimate form of quality control.

“We serve the best macaron that you’ll find in America—they really are delicious. We use only real ingredients and our recipe is complex, so we ship our product from Sarasota to all of our locations, with everything ready to be served,” Rosalie said.

Menu offerings

In addition to more than 20 different flavors of macarons—with new flavors introduced seasonally and for the holidays—Le Macaron serves a multitude of other pastries, like eclairs, napoleons, pies, cakes and croissants, as well as a fine chocolate selection and various beverages.

The brand’s café concepts also offer French gelato, a product that used to be imported from France, but as of this year, is now also being made from scratch out of the brand’s Sarasota headquarters. Other special treats and new flavors ahead this year include macaron ice cream sandwiches and a new red velvet-flavored macaron. Each Le Macaron franchisee has the chance to curate their products to include specially made localized flavors, Rosalie noted.

She recounted how one Le Macaron franchisee enlisted the brand’s expert chef to create a mojito-flavored macaron, while another franchisee based in Miami had mango and passion fruit-flavored macarons developed to appeal to the tastes of their local market.

“We’re always listening to our franchisees and taking ideas and requests from both them and their customers,” Rosalie said, adding, “Some even end up on the permanent menu.”

As an industry leader with plenty of room to grow, it’s this perfect combination of a commitment to authenticity and a willingness to adapt to evolving customer preferences that position Le Macaron to continue delighting new patrons with a taste of France in 2019 and beyond.