Café d’Avignon, a fast-growing New York bakery and café known for their execution of French and American pastry classics, signed the lease for a second franchise location in Orlando, Florida. Construction for the new café will start in 2020, and franchisee Alex Nikitin is already scouting sites for a third location in the Orlando area.
To facilitate its growth across Florida and nationwide, Café d’Avignon has partnered with Fransmart, the industry-leading franchise development company behind the explosive growth of brands like Five Guys Burgers & Fries and QDOBA Mexican Grill.
“America is starving for the next big thing in the coffee and café segment, because the current market is saturated with concepts that either offer good coffee and mediocre food options, or good food and mediocre coffee,” says Fransmart CEO andf Dan Rowe. “Café d’Avignon is part of the third-wave coffee movement, offering high-quality coffee and fresh-baked items that are unparalleled. The brand has seen great success in New York City’s most famous food halls, and with a new retail model it is positioned well to expand to major markets nationwide.”
Nikitin is Café d’Avignon’s first franchisee, and his first location in Sunset Walks at the famed Margaritaville Orlando will be the first Café d’Avignon to open outside New York City.
“I was looking for new investment opportunities, and several people in the food service industry encouraged me to check out Café d’Avignon,” says Nikitin. “I was blown away by the quality of the food, as well as the concept’s operational efficiencies. After experiencing the food and unique experience first-hand, I conducted the market research and felt confident in bringing the concept to the Orlando area.”
The founders of Café D’Avignon, a group of friends who emigrated to the U.S. from the former Yugoslavia, first founded its wholesale counterpart, Pain D’Avignon, in 1992 to bring European-style breads and pastries to the fine hotels, top restaurants, and luxury grocers of New York. The popularity of their goods lead them to open four Café D’Avignon retail locations.
Together with Fransmart, Café d’Avignon is currently seeking experienced franchisees to bring the Café d’Avignon concept to the New York City metro area and Florida.
