Overview
- Panera unveiled Panera RISE, a company-led transformation centered on four pillars: refreshing the menu, sharpening value, elevating service, and expanding its restaurant network.
- Phase one reverses prior cost-cutting to restore food quality and portion sizes, with plans to begin slicing cherry tomatoes and avocados for salads early next year.
- Stores will add more front-of-house staff, upgrade decade-old self-order kiosks, refresh dining rooms, and modernize or build new bakery-cafes.
- After retiring its highly caffeinated Charged Lemonade following lawsuits and settlements, Panera is running a 12-week test of Frescas (caffeine-free) and Energy Refreshers in about 65 locations across Nashville, Mobile/Pensacola, and Baltimore through Jan. 6.
- Technomic estimates show sales fell to about $6.1 billion last year and Panera slipped to No. 3 in fast-casual, and leadership says boosting traffic takes priority over a long-discussed IPO, with a target of exceeding $7 billion in systemwide sales by 2028.