Paris Baguette creates new division to enter Middle East and Africa markets

Paris Baguette’s first store in Manila, the Philippines | Photo credit: SPC Group

South Korea’s SPC Group has launched a new geographic reporting segment to oversee its Paris Baguette operations in Southeast Asia and facilitate expansion to markets across the Middle East, Africa and Oceania.  
 

The new AMEA (Asia-Pacific, Middle East, Africa) division will be managed by CEO Hana Lee, who previously managed the bakery-café chain’s operations in Southeast Asia. SPC Group Director Moon Tae-hwan has been appointed Chief Financial Officer of the new segment. 

Paris Baguette is set to scale its Southeast Asia presence in 2025 with planned launches in Thailand, Brunei and Laos – adding to sites in Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines. SPC Group is also expected to open a production factory in Johor Bahru, Malaysia, in early 2025. 

Expansion to the Middle East will be carried out by franchise partner Galadari Brothers Group, following the signing of a memorandum of understanding in October 2023. The joint venture is seeking to launch Paris Baguette in 12 markets across the Middle East, including Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain. 

The establishment of an AMEA division follows a significant executive reshuffle of Paris Baguette’s North America leadership team in January 2024, where five internal promotions were carried out to lead the franchise’s finance, HR, operations, supply chain and marketing functions. 

Founded in 1988, Paris Baguette is one of the largest branded coffee chains in South Korea with 3,750 stores. The bakery-café chain currently operates 630 international sites across 14 markets and is eyeing 12,000 stores globally by 2030. 

SPC Group has also formed a new Global Support department to strengthen communication between its South Korean headquarters and North America and AMEA divisions.