French beauty brand Yves Rocher has opened its first franchise in North America on June 1 at the West Edmonton Mall (WEM), in the Canadian province of Alberta.
Yves Rocher was first introduced in North America in the 1980s as a direct-mail business that eventually grew to 70 stores in Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick, but the WEM location is Yves Rocher’s first franchise in Canada, joining a chain of 1,800 stores around the world, the majority of which are franchised.
Historically, Yves Rocher only operated its own stores in Canada, as the company wanted to grow and ensure the success of their stores in the country before extending its network through franchisees. The company plans to open at least 10 more franchise locations in various parts of the country before the end of the year, and hopes to eventually introduce franchising to the U.S. too. Some of the existing corporate stores in Canada should also become franchises.
