Panera Bread
Encyclopedia
Panera Bread is a chain
of bakery
–café
quick casual restaurants in the United States and Canada that sells bread
s, sandwiches, soups, salads, and other bakery items. Its headquarters are in Sunset Hills, Missouri
, a suburb of St. Louis.
In 1993, Au Bon Pain Co. purchased the Saint Louis Bread Company, which was founded by Ken Rosenthal. At the same time, the St. Louis Bread Company was renovating its 20 bakery-cafés in the St. Louis
area.
In May 1999, to expand Panera Bread into a national restaurant
, Au Bon Pain Co. sold its other chains, including Au Bon Pain, which is now owned by Compass Group North America
. Au Bon Pain Co. then renamed itself Panera Bread. The company operates or franchises 1,453 Panera Bread bakery-cafés in 40 states and 17 facilities that deliver fresh dough to the bakery-cafés every day. Panera Bread's CEO is William Moreton.
In its headquarters city of St. Louis, Panera Bread still operates under the name St. Louis Bread Company. The St. Louis metropolitan area has over 100 locations.
In 2005, Panera ranked 37th on BusinessWeek
s list of "Hot Growth Companies", earning $38.6 million with a 42.9% increase in profits.
In 2007, Panera Bread purchased a majority stake in Paradise Bakery & Café, a Phoenix-based concept with over 70 locations in 10 states (predominantly in the west and southwest). The Company purchased the balance of Paradise in June 2009.
Panera Bread expanded into Canada, beginning in 2008 with Richmond Hill, Thornhill and Mississauga, all three in the Toronto
area.
On January 25, 2008, a class action lawsuit was filed against Panera Bread alleging Panera failed to disclose material adverse facts about the company's financial well-being, business relationships, and prospects.
In a 2008 Health
magazine study, Panera Bread was judged North America's most healthy fast casual restaurant
.
In 2009, the restaurant review service Zagat
named Panera one of the most popular restaurants for eating on the go. Panera was also rated #1 for Best Healthy Option, Best Salad, and Best Facilities, among restaurants with fewer than 5,000 locations.
" restaurant in its home market of St. Louis. CEO Ron Shaich based the idea on an NBC profile of the SAME Cafe
in Denver, Colorado. It has since expanded the concept to Dearborn, Michigan, and Portland, Oregon.
) (802.11B), access to customers. Panera is the largest provider of free WiFi in the US. This service includes SonicWALL
Internet filtering, which queries a central database before blocking or allowing access by category; the filter has been known to incorrectly categorize sites. Many locations restrict the duration of free Wi-Fi to 30 or 60 minutes during peak hours.
Franchising
Franchising is the practice of using another firm's successful business model. The word 'franchise' is of anglo-French derivation - from franc- meaning free, and is used both as a noun and as a verb....
of bakery
Bakery
A bakery is an establishment which produces and sells flour-based food baked in an oven such as bread, cakes, pastries and pies. Some retail bakeries are also cafés, serving coffee and tea to customers who wish to consume the baked goods on the premises.-See also:*Baker*Cake...
–café
Café
A café , also spelled cafe, in most countries refers to an establishment which focuses on serving coffee, like an American coffeehouse. In the United States, it may refer to an informal restaurant, offering a range of hot meals and made-to-order sandwiches...
quick casual restaurants in the United States and Canada that sells bread
Bread
Bread is a staple food prepared by cooking a dough of flour and water and often additional ingredients. Doughs are usually baked, but in some cuisines breads are steamed , fried , or baked on an unoiled frying pan . It may be leavened or unleavened...
s, sandwiches, soups, salads, and other bakery items. Its headquarters are in Sunset Hills, Missouri
Sunset Hills, Missouri
Sunset Hills is a city in St. Louis County, Missouri, United States. The population was 8,496 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Sunset Hills is located at 38°32'8" North, 90°24'14" West ....
, a suburb of St. Louis.
Corporate history
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
area.
In May 1999, to expand Panera Bread into a national restaurant
Restaurant
A restaurant is an establishment which prepares and serves food and drink to customers in return for money. Meals are generally served and eaten on premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services...
, Au Bon Pain Co. sold its other chains, including Au Bon Pain, which is now owned by Compass Group North America
Compass Group
Compass Group plc is a global contract foodservice and support services company headquartered near London, United Kingdom. It is the largest contract foodservice company in the world and has operations in over 50 countries...
. Au Bon Pain Co. then renamed itself Panera Bread. The company operates or franchises 1,453 Panera Bread bakery-cafés in 40 states and 17 facilities that deliver fresh dough to the bakery-cafés every day. Panera Bread's CEO is William Moreton.
In its headquarters city of St. Louis, Panera Bread still operates under the name St. Louis Bread Company. The St. Louis metropolitan area has over 100 locations.
In 2005, Panera ranked 37th on BusinessWeek
BusinessWeek
Bloomberg Businessweek, commonly and formerly known as BusinessWeek, is a weekly business magazine published by Bloomberg L.P. It is currently headquartered in New York City.- History :...
s list of "Hot Growth Companies", earning $38.6 million with a 42.9% increase in profits.
In 2007, Panera Bread purchased a majority stake in Paradise Bakery & Café, a Phoenix-based concept with over 70 locations in 10 states (predominantly in the west and southwest). The Company purchased the balance of Paradise in June 2009.
Panera Bread expanded into Canada, beginning in 2008 with Richmond Hill, Thornhill and Mississauga, all three in the Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
area.
On January 25, 2008, a class action lawsuit was filed against Panera Bread alleging Panera failed to disclose material adverse facts about the company's financial well-being, business relationships, and prospects.
In a 2008 Health
Health (magazine)
Health is an American magazine focused on women's health. It was purchased by Time Inc. in 1991. The company now operates as a part of Time's Southern Progress Corporation. The magazine's topics range from diet and recipes to fashion tips and dealing with life issues such as stress...
magazine study, Panera Bread was judged North America's most healthy fast casual restaurant
Fast casual restaurant
A fast casual restaurant is a type of restaurant that does not offer full table service, but promises a higher quality of food and atmosphere than a fast food restaurant. In the US, it is a relatively new and growing concept positioned between fast food and casual dining...
.
In 2009, the restaurant review service Zagat
Zagat Survey
Zagat Survey was established by Tim and Nina Zagat in 1979 as a way to collect and correlate the ratings of restaurants by diners. For their first guide, covering New York City, the Zagats surveyed their friends. As of 2005, the Zagat Survey included 70 cities, with reviews based on the input of...
named Panera one of the most popular restaurants for eating on the go. Panera was also rated #1 for Best Healthy Option, Best Salad, and Best Facilities, among restaurants with fewer than 5,000 locations.
Panera Cares
In 2010, the company's non profit foundation created Panera Cares, a non-profit "Pay what you canPay what you can
Pay what you can is a non-profit or for-profit business model which does not depend on set prices for its goods, but instead asks customers to pay what they feel the product or service is worth to them. It is often used as a promotional tactic, but can also be the regular method of doing business...
" restaurant in its home market of St. Louis. CEO Ron Shaich based the idea on an NBC profile of the SAME Cafe
SAME Cafe
The SAME Cafe is a nonprofit community cafe located at 2023 East Colfax Avenue, Denver, Colorado. Brad and Libby Birky invested $30,000 to open the restaurant on October 20, 2006, inspired by their background in community service and a visit to the One World Cafe in Salt Lake City, Utah...
in Denver, Colorado. It has since expanded the concept to Dearborn, Michigan, and Portland, Oregon.
Internet access
Most locations offer free wireless Internet (Wi-FiWi-Fi
Wi-Fi or Wifi, is a mechanism for wirelessly connecting electronic devices. A device enabled with Wi-Fi, such as a personal computer, video game console, smartphone, or digital audio player, can connect to the Internet via a wireless network access point. An access point has a range of about 20...
) (802.11B), access to customers. Panera is the largest provider of free WiFi in the US. This service includes SonicWALL
SonicWALL
SonicWALL is a private company headquartered in San Jose, CA. It sells a range of internet appliances primarily directed at content control and network security. These include devices providing services for network firewalls, UTMs , VPNs , backup and recovery, and anti-spam for email...
Internet filtering, which queries a central database before blocking or allowing access by category; the filter has been known to incorrectly categorize sites. Many locations restrict the duration of free Wi-Fi to 30 or 60 minutes during peak hours.
External links
- Official website
- Panera Bread corporate history
- My Panera Office Mobile Office Customers of Panera Bread