CJ Foodville Tous Les Jours Plants Flag in 20th US State... "Accelerating North American Market Expansion"

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Hyewon] CJ Foodville's Tous Les Jours announced on the 23rd that it has entered its 20th state by opening new stores this month in three U.S. states: Connecticut, Pennsylvania, and Nebraska.

Operating stores in 12 states in 2018, Tous Les Jours expanded its territory to 17 states last year by planting flags in new regions such as Michigan, Florida, and Colorado, and aims to enter a total of 22 states by the end of this year.

In the U.S., its first overseas market, Tous Les Jours has been establishing its foothold through directly operated stores since 2004 and has expanded its business mainly through franchises since 2009.

The secret to its success in the U.S. market lies in a product differentiation strategy that maximizes the strengths of K-bakery. Unlike local bakeries that mainly offer single items such as croissants and baguettes, Tous Les Jours presents nearly 200 different products on average in one store, increasing consumer satisfaction. Additionally, while considering local food culture characteristics and lifestyle, the Korean-style product lineup that reflects the personality of K-bakery has also gained great popularity alongside the K-culture wave.

In particular, the premium fresh cream cake has established itself as a representative product of Tous Les Jours with its moist fresh cream taste and sophisticated design, unlike the local products mainly consisting of rustic butter cakes. The locally exclusive product reflecting local customer needs, the "Mango Fresh Cream Cake," is also very popular. The domestic hit product "Sunjin Milk Cream Bread," made with dough kneaded only with milk instead of water and filled with milk cream, is also a local bestseller. The pure taste created by the high milk content of 45.5% appeals to health-conscious local customers as well.

Currently, Tous Les Jours operates a total of 75 stores, including major cities such as Los Angeles, New York, Texas, and Chicago, and plans to open two more stores by the end of this month.

A CJ Foodville official said, "As a result of fierce efforts to avoid premature external expansion and to strengthen solid internal foundations, we have established a robust profit model that has set record highs in profits for four consecutive years," adding, "We will successfully settle the first stores in each newly entered region and use them as a driving force for the growth of our U.S. business."