Le Macaron French Pastries Signs Franchisee in Charleston and Looks To Target South Carolina for Expansion

When Le Macaron French Pastries first opened its doors in 2009, founder Rosalie Guillem and her daughter Audrey Guillem-Saba were excited to bring the classic French delicacy of the macaron to the United States. After consumers began raving about the exceptional and elegant treats, the company decided to franchise their unique and delicious French bakery concept in 2012.

Since then, the confectionary concept has only grown in popularity—with 52 locations open in 11 states and 24 locations in development, Le Macaron French Pastries is primed for explosive expansion. Now, the French delicacy shop has a new target market in mind: South Carolina.

“Le Macaron originated in Florida and as we have expanded up and down the East Coast, South Carolina offers an amazing opportunity to continue our expansion throughout North America,” said Brian Knuth, Director of Marketing for Le Macaron.

South carolina expansion

Newly signed franchisee Christiane Strom plans to bring Le Macaron’s unique offering to her current home of Charleston, South Carolina. “My husband and I are originally from Copenhagen, so we were thrilled at the chance to bring a little piece of Europe to the United States,” said Strom. “After spending time with owner Rosalie Guillem and her team at the Le Macaron headquarters in Sarasota, Florida, we were blown away by the brand’s family-oriented values, inviting, warm atmosphere and dedicated franchise support team.”

Le Macaron offers franchisees a variety of models, including cafes, kiosks, and carts to ensure there is a version of Le Macaron French Pastries for everyone. By delivering all pastries fresh to each location, Le Macaron effectively eliminates on-site production, making the operational model and real estate footprint easy and adaptable. According to Knuth, this streamlined operational model is optimal within the premium, high-traffic tourist areas as it allows franchisees to maximize square footage.

“The strong economy and competitive real estate of tourist areas across the shoreline such as Myrtle Beach and Charleston offer the ideal demographic of younger customers with disposable income,” said Knuth. “Consumer patterns are always strong in popular vacation destinations up and down the coast.”

Strom agrees with Knuth’s assessment that Charleston is the perfect city for Le Macaron. “Charleston is an incredibly walkable city—similar to a European downtown—where the people are always on foot,” said Strom. “The city offers a fun combination of downtown entertainment and pedestrian areas, with people walking around to take in the historic downtown, focusing on pastries, coffee and food.”

Franchise model success

According to Knuth, a successful Le Macaron French Pastries operation features a warm and inviting environment curated by the owner. The attention to detail and high-quality ingredients of the luxury treats is what differentiates Le Macaron as a stand-out French gourmet concept, ensuring that the consistency of the exquisite product is reliable for franchisees and customers alike.

“The freedom and flexibility of our franchise model appeals to multi-unit operators looking for a scalable, low-commitment business opportunity,” said Knuth. “By combining and utilizing multiple models, franchise owners are given numerous options to expand their business and take advantage of cross-marketing and multiple revenue streams.”

As the original macaron franchise, Le Macaron has become the industry standard for these colorful creations, serving up hand-crafted, elegant pastries made from authentic French ingredients and recipes. Although macarons have been consumed for decades around the globe, Le Macaron is proud to introduce the tried and true treat to the American marketplace, providing franchisees a chance to dominate their local market.

“Our journey with the Le Macaron team has been incredible so far and we can’t wait to bring the signature French pastries to the beautiful state of South Carolina,” said Strom.

The investment range associated with opening a Le Macaron French Pastries pâtisserie or kiosk is $84,350 to $361,500 with a $45,000 franchise fee. For more information about franchising opportunities with Le Macaron, please visit *