News

Panera Bread opens second Panera Cares cafe

November 22, 2010

The Panera Bread Foundation has opened its second non-profit community cafe – called Panera Cares – in Dearborn, Mich. The company also announced plans to open a third Panera Cares Café in Portland, Ore., in January 2011.

The expansion is the result of the concept's success in Clayton, Mo., where the first non-profit community cafe – called Saint Louis Bread Co. Cares – opened in May.

The new stores do not tell customers what to pay for their meals. Rather, guests are asked to pay what they'd like to donate, whether it's the full suggested price, less or more. There are no prices or cash registers, only suggested donation levels and donation bins.

Dearborn, a Detroit suburb, was selected as the location of the second Panera Cares Cafe based on its diverse population.

"Given the economic challenges in the Greater Detroit area, opening a Panera Cares Cafe in this area was a natural choice," said Ron Shaich, Panera Bread's co-founder and chairman, and president of the Panera Bread Foundation. "These cafes exist to make a difference by offering the Panera experience with dignity to all – those who can afford it, those who need a hand up, and everyone in between. We anticipate that Panera Cares will have a tremendous impact on the Dearborn community."

One of the goals behind the charitable program is to ensure that everyone who needs a meal gets one. People are encouraged to take what they need and donate their fair share.

"The vision for the Panera Cares Cafe was to use Panera's unique restaurant skills to address real societal needs and make a direct impact in communities," Shaich said. "Thus, the Foundation developed these community cafes to make a difference by addressing the food insecurity issues that affect millions of Americans."

Panera Cares is a program run by the non-profit Panera Bread Foundation and is designed to be self-sustaining with support from the community.