Bonjour!

When you need a gift, where do you go?  Do you have a go-to place to shop?  Believe me, I know it's not easy to find well curated, beautifully merchandised specialty gift stores where you know you can always find a unique gift that will not only be well received, but LOVED, regardless the occasion. Since 2007, Le Village Marché has been known in the Washington DC area for being exactly this, earning this honor by serving one customer at a time, one experience at a time.  

And we have some exciting news to share! Our French-inspired home décor & gift boutique is now a specialty gift BOUTIQUE FRANCHISE!  A mid-luxury brand, we curate a modern blend of vintage inspired and classic home decor including frames, beaded chandeliers, kitchen & bar accessories, with carefully selected giftable items including luscious bath & body products, home fragrances, stationery & paper goods, jewelry, and baby gifts.  We import many French-made products such as glassware & cutlery from some of the oldest factories in France, as well as luxurious soaps and linens from Provence, combining to create a unique “feast for the senses” customer experience.  We hear comments from customers every day such as:  “This store is my happy place”, “This is my favorite gift shop”, "I always know I can find something unique here", "Whenever I'm in town, I always make time to visit your store"

These are the greatest compliments we could receive because it speaks to the quality & uniqueness of our products, and the environment we've created that makes customers want to return again and again. We want customers to feel like they’re casually strolling through a Paris flea market, and now each of our franchise owners have the opportunity to create this type of unique mix of merchandise in their own charming city or town, locally owned and operated.

How It All Began ...

I'm Angela Phelps, the founder of Le Village Marché. In 2000, I visited Paris for the first time with my mother. If you’ve visited Paris, or just seen scenes from movies, you know there’s something so charming about the narrow streets, outdoor cafes, bustling markets, rich history, and the French approach to living - their "joie de vivre". There’s beauty and elegance everywhere, from the architecture to the effortless way French women look and act. I loved strolling the quirky streets of Paris, stumbling upon creperies, cheese shops, bookshops filled with old books and maps, markets filled with dried lavender, soaps, linens, and vintage treasures like silver, china, jewelry, other small wares.

This 4-day trip stuck with me, and after 5 years, and hitting an early mid-life crisis, I decided to leave my career behind to find my passion. I had a number of successful jobs in my 20's, but none of them were truly fulfilling. I knew I was meant to do something else in life and decided that life was too short not to be doing something I really loved.

Inspired by my trip to Paris and my love for home interiors and vintage treasures, I followed my dreams and opened a French-inspired boutique in the Washington DC suburbs in March 2007. I named it Le Village Marché (clumsily translated the village market) because I wanted it to feel like a Paris flea market, blending the old & the new, the rustic & the refined. A place where people felt comfortable browsing, unpressured, looking for treasures, finding unique gifts, and losing themselves in the experience. I knew it was a risk, but I also knew that if it succeeded, it would be the best decision I would ever make.  Now, over 15 years later, I still love what I do, and every single day, our customers tell us that this store is their happy place. What an honor! Because that’s the way I felt when I went to Paris.

Maybe you’re looking for something new like I was years ago. Maybe you’re an empty nester looking for that next chapter. Maybe you’ve always dreamed of owning a boutique or a business you could own with your daughter, sister, or best friend. If you love home decor and interior design and your friends have often said "You should do this for a living!"  Maybe owning a Le Village Marché boutique might be right for you.

Get in touch. We’d love to share more with you.

Who We Are

Our Mission & Vision

When you need a gift, we want you to think Le Village Marché. We are setting a new standard for quality & uniqueness among mid-luxury specialty gift and home décor boutiques.

One customer at a time, one experience at a time we strive to curate beauty through unique & carefully curated gifts, while spreading kindness through warm & friendly service.

Our Core Values

1. First Impressions are Lasting Impressions: We place a high priority on creating a warm & welcoming environment for every person who comes into the store. From greeting them at the door to thanking them when they leave, we want customers to leave our store as happy as they entered.

2. Quality Products at Fair Pricing Is Important to Us: We’re committed to striking the delicate balance of quality products and sustainable margins in order to earn our customers’ trust & patronage.

3. We Believe in the Golden Rule of Customer Service: We treat customers how we want to be treated in a store - with kindness, respect, & authenticity – not pressured sales gimmicks.

4. Just Make It Work: Is there a problem? Let’s figure it out, work together, & solve the problem with a win-win solution for us and our customers.

Our Culture

Our culture within our company is similar to our approach to customer service. Whether it comes to customers or co-workers, we operate in a spirit of respect, professionalism, and teamwork. There are no egos here and we don’t believe in the phrase “That’s not my job”.

Every team member from the top down pitch in to help wherever and whenever necessary. We believe that each person brings a unique set of talents and abilities to our store. When we combine these talents and all work together toward the same goals, the store operates as a well-oiled machine.

Why Own a Le Village Marché

If you've often dreamed of being your own boss & having more work-life balance; if you love meeting new people, and have a flair for design, owning a Le Village Marché boutique franchise just might be right for you. Why Us?

  1. A low startup investment
  2. Better than a dream job - a dream business that YOU own
  3. Outlet for your creativity - let your creative juices flow everyday
  4. Be part of your local community - Think "Shop Around the Corner"
  5. Provide a unique shopping experience for your customers
  6. Founded in the DC area, we are nationally known as a quality, well-curated, mid-luxury gift boutique
  7. Experienced product and merchandising support
  8. We have an awesome Item 19 - contact us to learn more

Dream Big. Start Small.

No need to invest in highly technical stystems or costly equipment, our boutique franchises can be opened for as little as $166,406 which includes all of your store finishings, fixtures, initial inventory, and the cost of a grand opening celebration. You can be open for business in just 3-6 months once you've secured your lease and have been handed the keys to your boutique.

One week of pre-opening training is part of your Initial Franchise Fee – when you are ready, you will join us for 1 week at our flagship boutique, located in Shirlington Village, a charming community in Arlington, VA, in the Washington DC suburbs. While you are with us, we will review all of our operational practices, Point-of-Sale System (including inventory management and ordering new products), local marketing, and merchandising your boutique. Prior to coming to training, we will help you make initial inventory selections to align with the season you will open. We will also be there to help you with your Grand Opening, along with our commitment to support you with coaching, learning about new products, and introducing you to our vendors so that you can make the most of your business ownership in the future.

Some Basics

Maybe this is your first time considering a franchise. Maybe you've been searching for quite some time. Well, we think our brand is unique & if we can be so bold, extraordinary. Where would I even begin, you ask?

  • Initial franchise fee: $40,000 [US military veteran fee discounted 10% & discounts available for multiple boutiques]
  • Start-up investment: $166,406-$253,303 [for one boutique]
  • On-going royalty: 6% of gross sales [paid weekly]
  • Brand development fund: 1% of gross sales [also invest 1% or atleast $500/month in local advertising & marketing]
  • Grand opening: $7,500 to $10,000 [included in start-up range to launch your boutique]

Let's Answer Some Questions

Q: How much space do I need for this boutique? Between 1,200 and 1,800 square feet with adequate parking, pedestrian, and drive-by traffic. We have specific site criteria which will help you evaluate real estate options for your Le Village Marché boutique.

Q: Do I have to be an owner operator? Yes, we want our boutique owners to be actively involved in the daily operations, be a part of their community, & be the face of the business.

Q. Do I need retail management experience to own Le Village Marché? No. Truly, no retail experience is needed, but customer service, sales, or marketing experience will be a big plus. We're looking for kind, hospitable, enthusiastic owners who love meeting new people, love their community, love home décor or interior design & love helping others.

Q. How much will the business make in a year? We will be able to share our Financial Performance Representation, called an Item 19 in our Franchise Disclosure Document, which highlights affiliate performance and history. This can be a useful tool to help you evaluate the revenue potential for your Le Village Marché business.

Where to begin?

First, like any big decision, seek more information. You can do that by completing the form below. Once you receive the information, give it more thought, talk to friends and family, come up with more questions, then let's chat on the phone. If you decide you'd like to move forward with more details, complete our confidential questionnaire to receive our Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD). This will provide you with all the nuts and bolts in legal terms. If you're still feeling confident that this may be right for you, let's get together in person so you can meet us & discover more about Le Village Marché franchise ownership. We'll then have a final review with our leadership team and if this feels right for both of us, qualified candidates will become approved to open a Le Village Marché boutique. We'll pop open a bottle of champagne and start the onboarding process.

Let's Start the Conversation!

{Not An Offer To Sell a Franchise} This website and the information contained on this website is for information purposes only, is not intended as an offer to sell a franchise or a solicitation of an offer to buy a franchise. The offering of a franchise can be made by prospectus only in the form of a Franchise Disclosure Document. In the states of California, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin we will not offer you a franchise unless and until we have complied with applicable pre-sale registration and/or disclosure requirements.