A Le Pain Quotidien store in New York, US | Photo credit: CC BY-SA 4.0

Belgian bakery-café chain Le Pain Quotidien has opened its first store in Uruguay at the Punta Carretas shopping centre in Montevideo. 
 

Le Pain Quotidien will invest $3.5m to open six further outlets in the South American country over the next five years. The bakery café chain will be operated by the same regional team as in neighbouring Argentina, where Le Pain Quotidien has opened 40 stores since its debut in 2012. 

Argentina is Le Pain Quotidien’s second largest market by outlets and sales, behind the US where it operates 50 stores.  

The bakery café chain’s total global footprint comprises 200 outlets across 17 countries, including its native Belgium, France, Brazil, Colombia, Mexico and Japan. 

In July 2023, the UK division of Le Pain Quotidien closed all but one of its stores and entered administration. The bakery-café chain said lower footfall in central London following the pandemic, alongside higher property and staffing costs, were behind the decision. The appointment of administrators is not expected to disrupt Le Pain Quotidien’s operations in other markets globally.