In 1830, he entered the Azores fruit trade with the ship "Minerva". By 1836, he had formed a company Le Lacheur & Co, which owned two ships: "Minerva" and "Dart". Over the following years, he continued to add to his fleet, and to seek out new markets. In 1841, Le Lacheur took delivery of the barque "Monarch". The "Monarch" was a much larger vessel and capable of journeys further afield. During a stop at the port of Mazatlán, on the Pacific coast of Mexico, he learnt from the British Consul of the difficulty that the Costa Rican coffee growers were having in finding a market for their produce.