Hong Kong-based French patisserie Paul Lafayet eyes a bigger share of China’s growing market for Western-style desserts
- Paul Lafayet plans to open around 100 outlets on the mainland, as it eyes China’s growing market for desserts that is forecast to reach US$37.6 billion a year by 2025
- ‘China is huge, and the market is massive,’ says the company’s founder and chief executive
Hong Kong-based patisserie Paul Lafayet plans to ramp up its expansion plans on the mainland as it eyes China’s growing market for desserts that is set to reach US$37.6 billion a year by 2025.
Founded by the Younes family, the first Paul Lafayet shop opened in December 2009, in K11 Art Mall, in Tsim Sha Tsui. The French patisserie, which has gained a faithful following in the city for its crème brûlée and macarons, now wants to expand its fan base in mainland China as soon the border reopens.
“China is huge, and the market is massive,” said Toni Younes, founder and chief executive of Paul Lafayet. “The new generation in China is also becoming more oriented to this kind of product.”
He said that the company wants to maintain a sense of exclusivity. “In fine patisserie, you cannot open 1,000 or 10,000 shops. When you go for fine products, somehow it’s kind of like luxury.”
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Paul Lafayet currently has eight shops in Hong Kong and four in mainland China, employing around 120 staff across both locations. Their offering ranges from colourful macarons, starting at HK$22 each (US$2.80), to their signature crème brûlée made with fresh Madagascar vanilla beans, to an assortment of birthday cakes that cost close to HK$1,000 for a serving size of 16 people, according to their website.
China’s market for cakes and pastries is expected to grow by over 36 per cent to US$37.6 billion in the five years to 2025, versus 9.4 per cent globally, according to data from market research provider Euromonitor International. By 2025, the Chinese market is expected to account for about 21.6 per cent of the global market for cakes and pastries, Euromonitor said.
