This article gives an answer to the question- Is Corner Bakery Owned By Panera? Corner Bakery Cafe is also known as CBC Restaurant Corporation. It is an American-based chain of cafes that is highly famous for pastries, breakfasts, loaves of bread, gourmet sandwiches, salads, pasta, and many more. They are quite famous for making milk-related food products in the country. Is Corner Bakery Owned By Panera?
Yes, Panera was never the owner of Corner Bakery Cafe. Panera Bread Company is a head-to-head competitor of Corner Bakery Cafe which was founded way back in 1987 by Ken Rosenthal, Ronald M. Shaich, and Louise Kane.
CBC or Corner Bakery Cafe is believed to be a part of the fast-casual market segment in the food servicing industry. They are also known for making food products with the best and fresh ingredients for customer satisfaction.
Corner Bakery Cafe History of Foundation
The American-based chain of cafes was first founded three decades back in 1991 by Lettuce Entertain You Enterprise. Lettuce Entertain You Enterprise was a Chicago-based restaurant group and the founder of this company was Rich Melman and Jerry A. Orzoff.
The cafe just like its name started at a corner where it was inspired by great and the best fresh ingredients. It was in a corner in Chicago where highly skilled artisans created loaves of bread and freshly baked sweets. Slowly, the neighbors of Corner Bakery Cafe started asking for sandwiches with the best bread available and followed by homemade salads and soups. That is how a small Corner Bakery Cafe grew from making fresh loaves of bread and baked sweets to gourmet sandwiches, salads, and pasta.
To date, Corner Bakery Cafe has continued to fulfill the needs and wants of its neighbors and customers with freshly made food products. The uniqueness in visiting a Corner Bakery Cafe is one will see a real kitchen in place of assembly lines. One will hear the chopping sound of more than 40 types of herbs, fruits, vegetables, and fruits. These were the traditions that were established during its foundation and it is still being used to date.
Previous All Owners of Corner Bakery Cafe
Now, we all know the answer to the question- Is corner Bakery Owned By Panera?, but we’ll also know about other owners of Corner Bakery Cafe.
Lettuce Entertain You Enterprise (First Owner)
Lettuce Entertain You Enterprise was the first or the establishing owner of Corner Bakery, which was another Chicago-based famous restaurant group. The founder of Lettuce Entertain You Enterprise (LEYE) was Rich Melman and Jerry A. Orzoff. The restaurant chain Corner Bakery Cafe was founded in the year 1991 and was sold to another company just four years later.
Brinker International, Inc. (1994-2005)
The foundation company (LEYE) sold Corner Bakery Cafe to Brinker International, Inc. Brinker International is an American-based multinational hospitality industry that owned many other famous restaurant chains around the town. Some of the famous restaurant owned by Brinker International was Chilli’s and Maggiano’s Little Italy restaurant chains.
The multinational Brinker International, Inc hospitality industry company currently owns, runs, and franchises more than 1,500 restaurants under the names of its other owned restaurants. Brinker International company controlled and operated Corner Bakery Cafe for six years and then decided to sell it.
II Fornaio (America) Corporation (2005-2011)
Corner Bakery Cafe was taken over by II Fornaio (America) Corporation for nearly six years. But, at the end of 2010 II Fornaio (America) Corporation was bought by Roark Capital Group. Roark Capital Group is an Atlanta-based privatized equity firm that had then announced that they have bought the whole chain of II Fornaio Restaurants and Bakeries. Additionally, they had also announced that they are now the owner of Corner Bakery.
With this huge acquisition, Roark Capital Group had invested in 20 different franchise businesses that operated in more than 50 states and 40 different countries. Corner Bakery Cafe and II Fornaio was Roark’s 10th restaurant investment.
Roark Capital Group then decided to sell the company to Pandya Restaurant Growth Brands.
Pandya Restaurant Growth Brands, LLC (2011-To Date)
Pandya Restaurant Growth Brands LLC acquired Corner Bakery from Roark Capital in 2011 itself. Interestingly, the terms and conditions of the private transaction were not disclosed to the public. Pandya Restaurant Growth Brands, LLC is owned by Rohan Group of Companies where Pandya operates brands like Boston Market.
Later, it was revealed by Pandya Restaurant Growth Brands that the previous owner, Roark Capital had hired restructuring and financial advisors to explore strategic alternatives for Corner Bakery but it did not go well. The new owner of Corner Bakery said that it is their motive and aim to serve high-quality, kitchen-crafted food to consistent customers.
Moreover, it was the target of Pandya Restaurants Growth to improve the overall guest experience, menu development, and growth of the brand. During the ongoing pandemic, Corner bakery had seen sharp declines in earnings and revenues and also had difficulties before the pandemic with average unit volumes declining 2.4% last year.
The CEO of Corner Bakery Frank Paci seemed excited that his company was bought by Pandya Restaurant Growth Brands, LLC. He revealed in an interview that, this new company would help Corner Bakery Cafe to expand and bring resources that are needed to operate in such a challenging environment.
The Cafe now has 192 locations nationwide and has 200 units in 23 states. The large numbers of Corner Bakery Cafe are present in California, Texas, Illinois, and a few more.
Is Corner Bakery Owned By Panera?
Panera Bread Company is another American-based bakery cafe that is famous for making flatbreads, Panini, kinds of pasta, salads, sandwiches, side choices, and soups. The company was a huge competitor of Corner Bakery Cafe but, it never owned it.
Panera Bread Company has its casual restaurants in more than 2,000 locations and all of them are situated in the United States and Canada. Its offerings include kinds of pasta, soups, sandwiches, flatbreads but, its specialty is in drinks.
The company was founded way back in 1987 by Ken Rosenthal, Ronald M. Shaich, and Louise Kane. Twenty years earlier (1997-2017) before the company was sold to JAB Holding Company, Panera’s performance was at its best, delivered an 86-fold return to shareholders.
Later in 2017, the whole Panera Bread chain was acquired by JAB Holding Company with a $7.5 billion deal. JAB Holding Company owns some brands like Keurig, Panera, Krispy Kreme, and Pret a Manager. The company has made its name in the coffee, snack, and sandwich industry.
Conclusion
Corner Bakery Cafe might have been owned by many different companies still, it has managed to keep its old heritage alive. To date, they have continued to fulfill the needs and wants of customers and neighbors with the best and fresh prepared food.
As for the comparison with its competitor, Panera it has been proved that Corner Bakery offers a far superior breakfast menu than that of Panera. Additionally, the food of Corner Bakery not only tastes good but, the quality of the food is much better than any of its competitors.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What Tea company does Corner Bakery Cafe use?
Answer- Every Corner Bakery Cafe store around the country serves Mighty Leaf brand iced tea to the customers. The tea is one of the good tasting fresh brewed iced teas which is also served at Preet’s Coffee.
- Who is the current Chief Executive Officer of Corner Bakery Cafe?
Answer- The CEO of Corner Bakery Cafe is Mike Hislop. He has been the CEO of Corner Bakery since February 2066 to date.
- Who are the different competitors of Corner Bakery Cafe?
Answer- The competitors of Corner Bakery Cafe include Starbucks, Cinnabon, Bruegger’s, Panera Bread, and Starbucks.
- What are the types of coffee that Corner Bakery Cafe uses?
Answer- There are three to five types of coffee that are used by Corner Bakery Cafe in their everyday business and they are baker’s Blend, Hazelnut, Cafe Europa, or Sumatra Decaf.
