Transit General Office and TSI Holdings have jointly established D.A.B. Pastry (hereinafter referred to as D.A.B. Pastry). The business announcement was made on September 17th.
D.A.B. Pastry aims to expand the business of Dominique Ansel Bakery, a popular pastry shop in New York, in Japan. D.A.B. Pastry has signed a licensing agreement with the shop, acquiring trademark rights and jointly providing product development and technical guidance.
Dominique Ansel Bakery opened in New York in 2011 and has received numerous media awards, including being named "Best New Bakery of 2012" by Time Out New York just four months later. It's a popular pastry shop with lines of around 200 people daily. D.A.B. Pastry will open a second location in Tokyo next spring, following the New York location.
Transit General Office President and CEO Sadahiro Nakamura explained, "I learned about this store when I visited New York for Fashion Week last year, and I actually went there and waited in line for five hours from early in the morning. I strongly felt the potential for business expansion in Japan, but it would have been difficult to realize given our company's size. When I consulted with TSI Holdings President Miyake, we discussed the possibility of a merger, and from there we began our business expansion in Japan." TSI Holdings Chairman and President Masahiko Miyake commented, "Transit and I have collaborated on cafes, including the Jill Stuart Cafe, but we are very pleased to have been able to start this new business with President Nakamura as we enter the food and beverage business in earnest. We hope to develop a new culture and style and make this venture a success."
Dominique Ansel, owner and chef of Dominique Ansel Bakery, visited Japan for this event. "At our New York store, we see a lot of international travelers, and we wanted to serve our food at a fresher quality, which is why we decided to open overseas. We chose Japan for our second store because it's an inspiring country and we felt its laid-back atmosphere suited us. We'll develop our own unique style in Tokyo, and hope to eventually make it a store that people from New York will visit," he said.
D.A.B. Pastry's newly appointed CEO, Hiroto Hamada, and director, Hikaru Okada, also announced their future plans. The first store in Japan will be a large 495.9-square-meter store in the Omotesando area, which is lined with popular restaurants. They will position Omotesando as their flagship store, and after seeing customer reaction, they plan to develop plans for subsequent stores, including in-store locations, mainly in the Tokyo metropolitan area.
