Founded in 1985 in the Vendée region, La Mie Câline, which boasts a total of over 200 units and 42 million customers last year, saw its sales rise by 0.9% in 2013, to 134 million euros.
And interest in the brand from future franchisees continues unabated. Taking stock of Franchise Expo Paris, La Mie Câline reports that it met almost 300 applicants. All successful applicants have been contacted and invited to take part in one of the six information meetings to be organized by the company in the regions. Around 100 people are expected to attend in Saint-Jean-de-Monts, Paris, Lille, Lyon, Strasbourg, Toulouse and Aix-en-Provence. According to Claire Regent-Zuliani, Head of Franchisee Recruitment, "many of the projects concern the West and South of France, as well as major urban areas". As in 2013, some 30 new partners are expected to join the chain in 2014.
Given theage of our network," explains David Giraudeau, General Manager of La Mie Câline, " we experience a 'natural' turnover of 10% a year, with partners retiring, others coming to the end of their contract and wanting to start up another business, etc. Most new franchisees take over stores, and our net expansion is obviously lower than in the previous decade. Most new franchisees take over stores, and our net expansion is obviously lower than in the previous decade.
The cooking terminal chain is also expanding on other fronts in addition to its "classic" stores. A new motorway outlet opened its doors in mid-March at the Arclusaz service area in Savoie. And a sixth motorway store is due to open in May in Val Gelon (also on the A43).
Another area of development is the implementation of the agreement signed with the Sighor group to set up in railway stations. The first La Mie Câline is due to open in Rouen station at the end of 2014. Finally, after initial international development experiences (in Belgium, from where it has now withdrawn, and in Spain), which brought home the difficulty of finding the right master franchisee partners, the network's management has begun to think about other export formulas. This is the case in Mauritius, where it has just launched a co-branding venture (Tamam - La Mie Câline).
Source: http://www.franchise-magazine.com/actualite/breves/la-mie-caline-va-entrer-en-gare-8287.html
