Panera Bread plans to make further staff cuts

The parent company of food-to-go and coffee chain Panera Brands said a second round of corporate layoffs was necessary to cut costs ahead of a long-awaited initial public offering

Panera Bread currently operates 2,190 cafes in the US | Photo credit: Panera Bread

Panera Bread is laying off employees at its support centers in Massachusetts to streamline operations and cut costs ahead of a long-awaited initial public offering.

José Alberto Dueñas, CEO of parent company Panera Brands, said in an Oct. 1, 2024, memo to staff that Panera Bread was transforming its support centers by reducing and reassigning roles – but did not specify how many positions would be eliminated at its two locations in St. Louis and Newton.

Seen in the memo by Restaurant businessDueñas said the company needs to become “simpler, more flexible and faster than ever before.”

“As we evolve and grow, the way we work must also evolve. “We need to change the way we work to eliminate silos and simplify executive reporting lines to make faster decisions and drive more consistent execution,” he wrote.

The layoffs affect corporate-level employees on support teams, but franchisees and store-level employees are not affected.

Dueñas became CEO of Panera Brands in May 2023, when the JAB Holding Company-backed coffee and food-to-go group revived plans for a future public listing.

The following November, Panera Bread announced plans to cut about 300 of its 1,800 corporate employees, citing the need for greater efficiency and a simplified operating model. The Missouri-based food-to-go and coffee chain has also closed two fresh dough production facilities in the past 12 months, with a third facility in Georgia set to close in November 2024.

Panera Bread was founded in 1987 and was a publicly traded company until 2017, when it was acquired and privatized by Luxembourg-based private equity firm JAB Holding in a $7.16 billion deal. The company was merged into the fast-casual platform Panera Brands in August 2021, along with the Caribou Coffee and Einstein Bros. Bagels chains.

Panera Bread currently operates 2,190 cafes in the United States, making it the third-largest branded coffee chain by stores behind Starbucks and Dunkin', which operate more than 16,700 and 9,650 stores, respectively.