Paris Baguette has opened its 33rd New Jersey location at 280 West Main Street in Freehold, operated by franchise owners Ami and David Shah — a Monroe, N.J. couple now running their second Paris Baguette unit after careers in IT and engineering.
The Franchise Story
The Shahs' path to ownership traces back more than 15 years as loyal customers of the brand, beginning when Ami frequented the Edison, N.J. café. That personal connection is exactly the profile Paris Baguette says it seeks when awarding franchise agreements. The company describes its expansion strategy as built on partnerships with local entrepreneurs who have a genuine stake in their communities — a model increasingly common among fast-casual bakery-café concepts competing for the neighborhood dining occasion.
"We want to create a place where people feel welcome, whether they're stopping in for their morning coffee, picking up something special for a loved one, or gathering with friends and family," said Ami Shah. "Having been loyal Paris Baguette customers for more than 15 years, we understand what makes the brand special."
Growth Trajectory
The Freehold opening arrives as Paris Baguette operates more than 300 bakery cafés across North America and more than 4,000 locations worldwide. The brand has set a public target of 1,000 U.S. and Canadian locations by 2030 — a milestone that would roughly triple its current North American footprint in under five years. That pace puts Paris Baguette squarely in the conversation around bakery-café franchise expansion happening across the broader foodservice sector, where grab-and-go breakfast and artisan coffee dayparts continue to draw operator investment.
CEO Darren Tipton framed the Freehold opening within the brand's community-centered positioning. "We're on a mission to re-establish the neighborhood bakery café as the heart of the community across the U.S.," he said, "and we're excited to see Ami and David bring this to life in their local trade area."
What It Means for Operators
For foodservice and hospitality industry observers, Paris Baguette's New Jersey density — 33 units in a single state — signals a deliberate market-saturation approach before broadening into new geographies, a strategy that supports franchisee viability through brand awareness. The Freehold café menu follows the standard Paris Baguette format: artisan pastries, cakes, breads, and handcrafted coffee and tea beverages. As reported by Food & Beverage Magazine, bakery-café formats that blend fresh-baked goods with premium beverage programs have demonstrated resilience in competitive daypart markets, drawing both morning commuters and afternoon occasion traffic — the precise window the Shahs' grand opening promotion targeted with a free pastry and brewed coffee offer from 2 to 4 p.m.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
