Panera Bread Continues To Innovate The Fast Casual Guest Experience, Announces Plans For New Bakery-Cafe Design

ST. LOUIS, May 20, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Panera, a leader and innovator in the fast-casual restaurant segment, today unveiled its next-generation Panera bakery-cafe restaurant design. As the brand that introduced fast casual to the industry, Panera is redefining its modern experience to serve today's guest. This includes enhanced digital capabilities, personalized options and more drive-thru access for an increasingly off-premise world; yet, the brand is still betting on dine-in with comfortable seating around its signature fireplace and a focus on its unique craft bakery experience within a vibrant, warm and welcoming environment.

The new restaurant design builds upon Panera's innovation in digital and positions the concept to continue to thrive in off-premise channels including Delivery, Drive-Thru and Rapid Pick Up® – both in-cafe and via a dedicated drive-thru lane. Equal in importance is a modernized and revitalized dine-in experience, as the brand believes both dine-in and off-premise will continue to grow.

"Innovation is core to who we are and with our new next-generation Panera concept, we are doing what we've always done – keeping a personalized experience for the guest at the heart of everything we do," said Eduardo Luz, Chief Brand & Concept Officer, Panera Bread. "We're doubling down on what has always made Panera unique—creating human connection through caring associates and a warm, inviting environment filled with the smell of freshly-baked bread—while continuing to be a leader in digital access for the off-premise world."

The Panera next-generation bakery-cafe, the first of which will open this November in Ballwin, MO right outside of Panera's hometown of St. Louis, features the following main updates:

• Craft Bakery Experience – Each night, bakers in every Panera bake bread and bakery items fresh. Now, Panera is moving the bakery-cafe ovens to be in full view of the guests, so they can fully immerse themselves in the experience of baking happening throughout the day.
• Dual-Drive Thru with Dedicated Rapid Pick-Up Lane – Panera aims to significantly increase its locations with drive-thru and the new concept features a double-lane drive thru, with one lane dedicated specifically to the brand's signature Rapid Pick-Up service.
• Enhanced Digital Experience – Already a leader in the digital guest experience, the new Panera concept will feature new digital innovations including contactless dine-in and delivery, updated ordering kiosks, automatic loyalty identification, and a fully digitized menu both in-cafe and in drive-thru.
• Contactless Ordering – This new service will allow guests who choose a fully contactless experience to easily order their meal from their own phone for dine-in, Rapid Pick-Up, drive-thru or delivery. Once the order is made, guests are notified via mobile notifications when their food is ready, minimalizing interaction with cashiers, kiosks, paper receipts or pagers.
• Refreshed Brand Identity – The next-generation bakery-cafes will introduce an updated Panera Bread logo and brand identity, unveiled in 2021. The refreshed Panera "Mother Bread" logo is a nod to Panera Bread's more than 30-year-old sourdough starter from which all of its sourdough bread is still made today.
• Intuitive Guest Journey – A core focus of the next-generation design has been improving the guest journey and making it more intuitive. This includes deploying clear and concise wayfinding on the exterior of the cafe and refining how the guest routes through the cafe after entering the front door – from experiencing our bakery, ordering (either through a traditional register or a digital kiosk) and picking up their food. Guest convenience is one of the highest priorities of the new design.

The next-generation Panera bakery-cafe is the latest update in a series of digital and menu innovations from the brand over the course of the last year, including Panera Curbside, its $8.99/month plus tax premium coffee subscription, as well as a new Flatbread Pizza category that has expanded to five delicious flatbread offerings. By seamlessly integrating orders with the company's loyalty program—MyPanera®—guests can save their favorites, earn and track rewards, and receive one-to-one tailored content.

Panera worked with leading brand design agencies BrandOpus to develop the updated Panera brand identity and logo, and ChangeUp to design the next-generation Panera restaurant concept. For more information or to place an order, download the Panera app or visit www.panerabread.com.

About Panera Bread 
Thirty years ago, at a time when quick service meant low quality, Panera set out to challenge this expectation. We believed that food that was good and that you could feel good about, served in a warm and welcoming environment by people who cared, could bring out the best in all of us. To us, that is food as it should be and that is why we exist.

So, we began with a simple commitment: to bake bread fresh every day in our bakery-cafes. No short cuts, just bakers with simple ingredients and hot ovens. Each night, any unsold bread and baked goods were shared with neighbors in need.

These traditions carry on today, as we have continued to find ways to be an ally for wellness to our guests. That means crafting a menu of soups, salads and sandwiches that we are proud to feed our families. Like poultry and pork raised without antibiotics on our salads and sandwiches. A commitment to transparency and options that empower our guests to eat the way they want. Seasonal flavors and whole grains. And a commitment to removing or not using artificial additives (preservatives, sweeteners, flavors, and colors from artificial sources on our No No list) in the food in our U.S. bakery-cafes. Why? Because we think that simpler is better and we believe in serving food as it should be. Because when you don't have to compromise to eat well, all that is left is the joy of eating.

We're also focused on improving quality and convenience. With investments in technology and operations, we now offer new ways to enjoy your Panera favorites – like mobile ordering and Rapid Pick-Up® for to-go orders and delivery – all designed to make things easier for our guests.

As of April 27, 2021, there were 2,118 bakery-cafes in 48 states and in Ontario, Canada, operating under the Panera Bread® or Saint Louis Bread Co.® names.  For more information, visit panerabread.com or find us on Twitter (@panerabread), Facebook (facebook.com/panerabread) or Instagram (@panerabread).

Media Contact:
Edward Ruddy
[email protected]

SOURCE Panera Bread