La Feuille Verte, a Quebec company specializing in the growing, processing and marketing of local hemp, is proud to announce the expansion of its Maison d’Herbes café-boutique concept and the opening of five locations—in Montreal, Trois-Rivières, Lévis, Drummondville and Coaticook—in the coming weeks.
La Feuille Verte markets the Maison d’Herbes, Chanv, Chempion, Crocx, Kombuchanv and Bon Vivant brands, representing more than 150 products offered at 1,200 points of sale in Quebec. To manage its growth and remain true to its identity, the company is banking on the expansion of the new Maison d’Herbes café-boutique concept throughout Quebec. The five new stores will open in close proximity to branches of the Société québécoise du cannabis (SQDC).
A Remarkable Growth
Since the opening of the first Maison d’Herbes concept in Drummondville in April 2018, the craze for natural hemp-based products has been booming. La Feuille Verte has seen its sales increase by 4% to 8% monthly, even in this period of pandemic. In the summer of 2018, the company acquired a new 65,000 sq. ft. complex in Saint-Cyrille-de-Wendover for its subsidiary De La Ferme, which grows female hemp to harvest the flower heads. La Feuille Verte is currently evaluating opportunities to commercialize new natural health products, including THC-free cannabinoids and terpenes. These ingredients are important components of the essential oils secreted by the buds of dried flowers. The new products could be commercialized soon.
“Maison d’Herbes is the destination in Quebec for discovering the virtues of hemp and many derivative products from Quebec. Since 2018, investments of half a million dollars have been devoted solely to the development of this concept. The opening of each concession represents an investment of $40,000 to $100,000 for the new regional owners. This is a great opportunity for entrepreneurs who wish to go into business in a booming industry. The concept can be easily adapted to different types of premises thanks to the flexibility of our offer. La Feuille Verte currently employs some twenty employees and each new Maison d’Herbes will allow for the creation of three to seven new jobs. Consumers are actively seeking local, comforting and natural products. We are also attracting interest from abroad,” said Dany Lefebvre, President and CEO of La Feuille Verte.
Democratizing Hemp
The mission of Maison d’Herbes is to make people discover hemp in all its forms, whether online or in its café-boutiques. A café-boutique is the perfect place to taste a new tea or to test a hemp-based cream, among other things. In a warm atmosphere, the consumer will be welcomed by employees who have received specific training.
“The hemp industry lags nearly 100 years behind the soybean industry in terms of research, due to years of prohibition. In Canada, hemp has been regulated since 1998 and can be grown with a federal government permit. In fact, La Feuille Verte partnered with UQTR in 2019 to allow its bachelor’s students in biochemistry and biotechnology to conduct research on these plants. Hemp cultivation is environmentally friendly, and the nutritional properties of its seeds are of interest to many consumers,” says Claude Lafleur, Chairman of the Board of Directors of La Feuille Verte and former CEO of La Coop fédérée, from 2005 to 2014.
La Feuille Verte wants to get closer to its customers with the Maison d’Herbes café-boutique concept, like a hemp merchant, and is betting on take-out orders, as well as online sales, in the current context. Daring Quebec entrepreneurs who would like to become owners of a Maison d’Herbes location are invited to visit the new concession section of the website.
About La Feuille Verte
Founded in 2004 and located in Saint-Cyrille-de-Wendover in the Centre-du-Québec region, La Feuille Verte is the largest Quebec company specializing in the cultivation and processing of Quebec hemp, as well as the marketing of derivative products. The company markets the Maison d’Herbes, Chanv, Chempion, Crocx, Kombuchanv and Bon Vivant brands, representing more than 150 products offered at 1,200 points of sale in Quebec and online. For more information, visit www.lafeuilleverte.ca.
About Maison d’Herbes
Maison d’Herbes is a coffee shop concept that specializes in the sale of products featuring hemp: food, health drinks, clothing, body care and pet products. It offers its Maison d’Herbes brand teas, as well as several other natural health products. Maison d’Herbes was founded in Drummondville in 2018 and will have seven locations in Quebec by early 2021. For more information, visit www.maisondherbes.com.