Le Macaron, a French pastry shop, is opening a location in Downtown Tucson in late November.
Le Macaron will be located on 260 E Congress St. directly next to the HUB Restaurant and Ice Creamery. The franchise specializes in using top quality ingredients in their sweets and features over 20 flavors of gluten-free macarons, gourmet chocolates, creamy gelato, European-style coffees, classic French pastries and homemade candies, according to their website.
The Tucson location is the first to open in Arizona, according to Visit Tucson. Rosalie Guillem and her daughter, Audrey Guillem-Saba, opened the first Le Macaron in 2009 in Sarasota, Florida. The women began franchising in 2012 due to an influx of requests from customers to open a location in their community, according to the website. The company now has over 60 locations across the United States.
Tucson residents Gary and Stacy Haggart own the Tucson franchise and say they look forward to creating a comfortable, bright environment for customers. Stacy Haggart, a stay-at-home mom of five, said that she got the idea from her teen daughter, who took up baking macarons as a hobby and received many amazed reactions when people tried them.
“That’s what got me thinking, there’s something about these magical cookies,” Stacy Haggart said. “I started looking into where you can find a really great macaron in Tucson, and there’s not a lot out there. Tucson is needing more macarons.”
Taking the leap into opening a business has been a big step for the Haggart family. Neither Stacy nor her husband had prior business experience, but the couple was able to secure $93,000 from the Rio Nuevo Board and the Haggarts invested another $400,000 to open the store.
Gary Haggart, an engineer, said that he was skeptical of the idea at first but has enjoyed seeing his wife create her vision for the shop.
“I think that one of the things that Stacy keeps saying as we discuss our business is ‘let’s see what a little cookie can do,’” Gary Haggart said.
While the French delicacies are made with high-grade ingredients, Stacy Haggart said she hopes people do not avoid coming because they worry that they won’t be able to afford something.
“Our price point is going to be close to $3 per macaron, but we will also have other items in the store,” Stacy Haggart said. “We’ll have things as low as 75 cents and up, so there will be something for every price point in our store.”
The store will have a bright pink interior featuring a chandelier and a seating area surrounded by a French-themed mural created by Tucson muralist and macaron lover Pen Macias. The mural features images of the Eiffel Tower, the Notre Dame Cathedral and small symbols representing each of the couple’s children.
“Family is behind everything,” Stacy Haggart said.
She said she and her husband look forward to spending more time together and with their family while running the shop, which they hope provides Tucson with a little taste of France.
Follow the Daily Wildcat on Instagram and Twitter/X
