The three brands have united to form Panera Brands.
Panera Bread, the fast-casual concept, Caribou Coffee, the regional coffeehouse chain and Einstein Bros. Bagels, the bagel/sandwich maker has come to form Panera Brands, representing over 4,000 locations, 110,000 employees across 10 countries.
Niren Choudhary, the CEO of Panera Bread will serve as CEO of Panera Brands. John Butcher, CEO of Caribou Coffee and Jose Alberto Duenas, CEO of Einstein Bros. Bagels will continue to serve as CEOs of their respective brands.
“Together as Panera Brands, we are united by our common values and shared belief that we can be force multipliers for good. We exist to provide exceptional experiences for our guests, and to positively impact our communities, the planet and our shareholders while unlocking the dreams of our teams.” said Niren Chaudhary, group CEO of Panera Brands and CEO, Panera Bread.
“We believe Panera Bread, Caribou Coffee and Einstein Bros. Bagels together will leverage each company’s unique expertise and services to build an unrivaled fast casual platform with a tremendous runway for growth.”
Panera Bread boasts 2,100 locations currently, and during the pandemic pivoted to more off-premise sites and digitized certain processes that were suitable.
Caribou Coffee, founded in 1992 currently has 713 locations in 10 countries with a significant presence outside the U.S.A.
“Caribou Coffee is proud to be closing out the first half of 2021 stronger than ever,” said John Butcher, CEO of Caribou Coffee. “Our purpose at Caribou Coffee is to create day-making experiences that spark a chain reaction of GOOD. The creation of Panera Brands enables us to work smarter together, and drive greater impact for our teams, guests and communities.”
Einstein Bros. Bagels currently operates 1,005 stores after establishing itself in Miami in 1995.
“At Einstein Bros. Bagels, our relentless focus on delivering the most craveable breakfast experience for our guests and our efforts to transform the business during 2020 allowed us to come out of the pandemic as a stronger, more profitable, and more nimble company,” said José Alberto Dueñas, CEO of Einstein Bros. Bagels. “I’m looking forward to seeing our powerful brand portfolio, executed with a simplified retail model and optimized for a great digital experience, continue to gain momentum.”
