The Hallmark Channel's association with what came to be its longest-running franchise began in 2008 with the made-for-TV movie "The Good Witch." The movie proved to be a massive success. As The Hollywood Reporter noted, "The Good Witch" was the second most-watched original movie the network had aired up to that point. A follow-up film was fast-tracked, with "The Good Witch's Garden" following in 2009. "It was never supposed to be a franchise," executive producer Jon Eskenas told TV Goodness. "When we did the first movie, it just got these massive numbers, and so then it was, 'Okay, let's do a second.' And there was no planning to do it."

More movies kept coming, with the Hallmark Channel producing a new one each year, including "The Good Witch's Gift" (2010), "The Good Witch's Family" (2011), "The Good Witch's Charm" (2012), "The Good Witch's Destiny" (2013), and "The Good Witch's Wonder" (2014). 

In 2015, in what must have been something of a no-brainer decision, the Hallmark Channel launched "Good Witch," a full-fledged TV series. According to Eskenas, transforming a hit made-for-TV movie franchise into a TV series wasn't as straightforward as one might imagine. "What makes the movies work is you have a very clear beginning, middle, and end," he explained. "[With a series], you may want some of that, but you want to be able to build, too."