SPC Group, the operator of Korea’s leading bakery franchise Paris Baguette, said Sunday it will enter Canada by launching the flagship Paris Baguette brand next year.

According to the company, it recently established Paris Baguette Family Canada Licensing with a plan to open the first stores in major cities in the country, including Vancouver and Toronto in the first half of next year.

The move comes as part of its plan to expand its business in North America. SPC Group has had laid out a blueprint of its overseas business plan revolving around four countries -- China, the US, Singapore and France.

SPC Group said it aims to open over 100 stores across Canada by 2030.

The Korean company launched its first overseas Paris Baguette store in the US in 2005. There, the bakery brand operates 83 stores in the US, including 15 in New York’s Manhattan, the company said.

SPC Group currently operates about 400 overseas stores in France, the US, China, Singapore and Vietnam. In March, the company completed construction of a factory in Tianjin, China.

In September, it established a joint venture with a local company in Cambodia.

By Jo He-rim (herim@heraldcorp.com)