The food and beverage group plans to open five Paris Baguette stores in the wealthy Southeast Asian country by 2034, in addition to its six licensed bakery-cafes in Malaysia and the Philippines.
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Paris Baguette store at TRX Exchange Shopping Centre, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | Photo credit: Paris Baguette Malaysia
Malaysian food and beverage group Berjaya Food has signed a letter of intent to open a Paris Baguette in Brunei, with the partnership's first store expected to open in the fourth quarter of 2024.
Berjaya Food currently operates five licensed Paris Baguette stores in Malaysia and is set to open one in the Philippines in April 2024.
The Selangor-based company, which also operates more than 400 licensed Starbucks stores in Malaysia and Brunei, is seeking a local partner to facilitate the relocation and plans to open five stores in Brunei over the next 10 years.
“Being awarded the right to operate Paris Baguette in Brunei marks a major milestone in our expansion into the Asia Pacific region. Building on the success of our expansions in Malaysia and the Philippines, we are confident that we can replicate this success in Brunei,” said Berjaya Food CEO Datuk Sidney Keys.
With a population of about 450,000, Brunei is one of the smallest countries in Southeast Asia, but also one of the wealthiest, with one of the world's highest GDPs per capita, fuelled by abundant oil and gas reserves.
According to World Coffee Portal's Project Café East Asia 2024 report, Brunei's overall branded coffee shop market is just 27 outlets, led by US chain The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf with 10 outlets, but the market is predicted to grow significantly over the next five years to surpass 100 outlets by the end of 2028.
In May 2024, Berjaya Food reported a third consecutive quarterly decline in sales and profits amid an ongoing customer boycott of Starbucks stores over the Gaza conflict. But the food and beverage group's directors said they expected a “gradual improvement” in its operating performance in the fourth quarter ending June 30, 2024.
Founded in Seoul in 1988, Paris Baguette currently operates 3,750 stores in Korea and more than 500 stores in 11 overseas markets.
In October 2023, the bakery-café chain signed a memorandum of understanding with UAE-based Galadari Brothers Group to open stores across the Middle East.
