Case 29 Panera Bread Company: Rising Fortunes?

* The company has sufficient liquidity to finance ongoing operations without taking on additional debt.

Aircel group is an Indian mobile network operator headquartered in Chennai, that provides wireless voice, messaging and data services in India. It is a joint venture between Maxis Communications of Malaysia and Apollo Hospitals Group of India, with Maxis Communications holding a majority stake of 74%. Aircel commenced operations in 1999 and today is the leading mobile operator in Tamil Nadu, Assam, North-East India and Chennai. Aircel Business Solutions (ABS) is the enterprise division of Aircel(B2B), which addresses the telecom requirements of International and Indian markets with an array of industry-leading products and services to various corporate. Aircel Business Solutions is an emerging firm in the field of internet industry. Its range of product and services includes Internet Leased Line (ILL) services, Video conference solutions, Data transfer solutions, Data Connectivity Solutions, BaaS (Backup-as-a-Service) and mobility

“A loaf of bread in every arm” is the mission statement of Panera Bread Company (Vincelette & Fogarty, 2010, p.1). Panera started as a small bakery under the name Au Bon Pain and grew to one of the largest fast food service companies in the U.S. In 2008 they had the 5th overall rating in the restaurant industry. “Panera Bread is widely recognized for driving the nationwide trend for specialty breads” (Panera Bread, 2011).

The Panera Bread Company is starting 2007 with unfinished goals and missed targets previously set and a review of their strategy is in order to continue their ongoing success. The company has grown substantially since its inception in the competitive restaurant industry; however, an aggressive target of 2,000 Panera Bread bakery-cafes will require a focused strategic plan. The company has a strong base with loyal customers who appreciate Panera’s unique dining atmosphere with a focus on quality products at a reasonable price. Panera will need to continue its market research and focus on environmental issues, which are an important core value. The opportunity for

1. What is Panera Bread’s strategy? Which of the five generic competitive strategies discussed in Chapter 5 most closely fit the competitive approach that Panera Bread is taking? What type of competitive advantage is Panera Bread trying to achieve?

1. What is Panera Bread’s strategy? Which of the competitive strategies discussed in Chapter 1 most closely fit the competitive approach that Panera Bread is taking? What type of competitive advantage is Panera Bread trying to achieve?

Summary statement of the problem: The Panera Bread Company has made a name for itself by offering quality, nutritious meals to its customers. You can eat at Panera Bread without worrying if you are getting a healthy, nutritious meal. With today’s health conscious society this has served the company well. With the rise in other health food type restaurants, the question arises is Panera Bread’s current strategy enough to keep them on top? In order to continue to succeed, Panera Bread needs to branch out into the foreign markets, add some key

Among the crowded field of casual, quick-service restaurants in America, the distinctive blend of genuine artisan bread and a warm, comfortable atmosphere has given Panera Bread Company a golden opportunity to capture market share and reward shareholders through well-planned growth. With the objective of opening approximately 1,000 more bakery-cafes in the next three years, Panera Bread Company must make prudent strategy decisions about new store locations, supply-chain management and expanded offerings, all the while continuing its above-average earnings per share growth of at least 25 percent per year.

Panera Bread has experienced an extreme amount of success since it was established in 1981.

The Panera Bread Company began in 1981 as Au Bon Pain Co., Inc. Founded by Ron Shaich and Louis Kane, the company thrived along the east coast of the United States and internationally throughout the 1980’s and 1990’s and became the dominant operator within the bakery-café category. In the early 1990’s, Saint Louis Bread company, a chain of 20 bakery-cafes were acquired by the Au Bon Pain Co. Following this purchase, the company redesigned the newly acquired company and increased unit volumes by 75%. This new concept was named Panera Bread. Top management chose to sell their previous bakery-café known as Au Bon Pain Co. due to the financial and managerial needs of Panera. In order for Panera to become

Divided into three classes of membership, At the time of the May 2010 annual meeting, the Board consisted of six members. The board has established three standing committees, each of which operated under a charter approved by the Board.

1. Continuing their commitment to provide crave-able food that people trust, served in a warm, community gathering place by associates who make guests feel comfortable

Maxis is one of the telecommunications service providers in Malaysia, enabling both individual and business customers to connect and communicate from any device. Such as voice calls, text and picture messaging services. As a provider of 3G and 4G extended range of data services such as mobile

Panera Bread Company is a national bakery-cafe with 1,504 locations across the US and Canada. This case study provides information regarding the past performance, current analysis, stock valuation, market evaluation, and industry comparison. In this analysis and case study, we hope you, the reader, will gain usable insight on Panera Bread and its value. We will give a recommendation to our readers according to our given information.

In 1993, AU Bon Pain Company purchased the Saint Louis Bread Company. In 1995, top management at Au Bon Pain instituted a comprehensive overhaul of the newly-acquired Saint Louis Bread locations. The overhaul included altering the menu and the dining atmosphere. The vision was to create a specialty cafe anchored by an authentic, fresh-dough artisan bakery and upscale quick-service menu selections. This acquisition proved successful for Au Bon Pain. Between 1993 and 1997, average unit volumes at the revamped locations increased by 75% and over 100 additional locations were opened. In 1997, the bakery-cafes were renamed Panera bread in markets outside of St Louis. The Panera business plan had worked well and management concluded it had broad