Where We Buy: Retail Real Estate with James Cook
Tous Les Jours' Path to 1,000 US Locations - Where We Buy #372
Where We Buy: Retail Real Estate with James Cook
•March 6, 2026•30 min
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Where We Buy: Retail Real Estate with James Cook•Mar 6, 2026
Why It Matters
Tous les Jours’ aggressive U.S. rollout illustrates how hybrid bakery‑café concepts can capture both fast‑service and third‑place demand, reshaping the competitive landscape for coffee and bakery retailers. Understanding their expansion tactics offers valuable insights for developers, franchisees, and investors looking to capitalize on evolving consumer preferences for premium, culturally blended food experiences.
Key Takeaways
- •180 US stores, 31 states, targeting 1,000 by 2030.
- •3,000‑sq‑ft footprint, end‑cap or inline locations preferred.
- •Franchise‑driven growth, adding corporate stores in Dallas and Manhattan.
- •Menu features matcha, ube drinks, cloud cakes, craft coffee.
- •Georgia facility supplies raw dough, ensuring product consistency.
Pulse Analysis
Tous les Jours, the Korean‑owned bakery cafe under CJ Foodville, has accelerated its U.S. rollout to more than 180 locations across 31 states. The brand targets a thousand stores by 2030, leveraging a 3,000‑square‑foot footprint that fits both prominent end‑cap and inline retail spaces. This real‑estate strategy, combined with a franchise‑driven model and selective corporate openings in markets like Dallas and Manhattan, positions the chain to capture high‑traffic corridors while maintaining rapid site acquisition.
The menu blends French pastry techniques with Asian flavors, spotlighting matcha and ube beverages, cloud cakes, and craft coffee. By offering both grab‑and‑go items and a welcoming third‑place atmosphere, Tous les Jours meets divergent consumer habits: quick takeaway for commuters and relaxed sit‑in experiences for social gatherings. Seasonal color‑rich drinks and signature baked goods reinforce the brand’s Instagram‑ready appeal, helping it stand out amid coffee giants and grocery‑store bakeries.
Operationally, the chain supports franchisees with a Georgia‑based production hub that supplies pre‑prepared dough, ensuring consistency while simplifying store labor. This hybrid approach balances fresh‑baked authenticity with scalable efficiency. As competition intensifies in the fast‑casual bakery sector, Tous les Jours leverages the broader Korean cultural wave—K‑pop, K‑beauty, and K‑food—to deepen brand relevance and explore future Korean‑food concepts. The combination of strategic real‑estate placement, innovative menu, and supply‑chain rigor underpins its aggressive growth trajectory.
Episode Description
Taeyun Kim is Chief Development Officer at CJ Foodville US, the parent company of Tous les Jours, a French-Asian bakery cafe chain with over 180 locations across 31 states. Taeyun discusses the company's ambitious expansion plans to reach 1,000 stores by 2030, explaining the brand's unique positioning as a neighborhood bakery offering fresh-baked pastries and bread with European and Asian influences. She covers the franchise-driven growth model, ideal real estate requirements (3,000 square feet in prominent locations), and the recent opening of a state-of-the-art production facility in Gainesville, Georgia to support supply chain stability. She also shares insights on menu innovation, the Korean bakery tradition, signature items like cloud cakes and salt bread, and her background in restaurant real estate development, including her work with Panda Restaurant Group, Argo Tea, and Wow Bao's ghost kitchen program during the pandemic.
James Cook is the Director of Retail Research in the Americas for JLL.
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Theme music is Run in the Night by The Good Lawdz, under Creative Commons license.
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