St. Louis, MO (RestaurantNews.com) Panera Bread Company (NASDAQ: PNRA)
Highlights
- Drew Madsen named President
- Ken Koziol named Executive Vice President
Panera Bread Company (NASDAQ: PNRA) has named Drew Madsen president effective May 11. He will report to Ron Shaich, chairman and CEO. Madsen will oversee the core café business, while Shaich focuses on strategy, growth initiatives and innovation across the company.
Madsen served as president and COO of Darden Restaurants Inc., the world’s largest full-service restaurant company. During his nine years in that position, the casual-dining company’s number of restaurants grew by 61%, sales grew 81% and earnings per share doubled, leading to a total shareholder return of 110%. During his time as President and COO, Darden was the first restaurant company to be recognized as a Fortune “100 Best Companies to Work For,” achieving that distinction in 2011, 2012 and 2013.
He also previously served as president of Darden’s Olive Garden chain and was Olive Garden’s executive vice president of marketing prior to that.
Before that, Madsen was president of International Masters Publishers, and vice president/general manager of James River Corp. He began his career at General Mills, where he spent 12 years, progressing from marketing assistant to vice president of marketing. He received his bachelor’s degree from DePauw University and his master’s in business administration from the Stephen M. Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan.
In addition, Ken Koziol joined Panera as executive vice president on April 27. Koziol will oversee a range of cafe support functions.
Koziol comes to Panera from McDonald’s, where he served as executive vice president, Worldwide Chief Restaurant Officer. In that position, he oversaw worldwide operations support, design, equipment, innovation, mobile, delivery, training, safety and security.
Before that, Koziol led McDonald’s corporate innovation function. While at McDonald’s, he also served as vice president, Worldwide Restaurant Innovation; vice president, Worldwide Quality Assurance; and senior director, U.S. Supply Chain Management. Koziol received his bachelor’s degree from Northeastern Illinois University and his master’s degree in business administration from Northern Illinois University.
Ron Shaich, chairman and CEO, commented: “We are excited to welcome Drew and Ken to Panera, rounding out the strongest senior leadership team we’ve ever had. This is a pivotal time for Panera as we continue to make progress on initiatives to make Panera a better competitive alternative with expanded growth opportunities. Both Drew and Ken are talented and accomplished executives who will augment our organizational capabilities as we work to improve the guest experience through Panera 2.0 (inclusive of digital access and improved operational capabilities); drive consumer excitement through innovation in food, marketing and store design; and build capabilities to grow in adjacent businesses, including catering, delivery and consumer products. Given the strength of our plan and our team’s ability to execute that plan, I am evermore confident we will achieve our mission of positioning Panera for significant earnings growth for years to come.”
About Panera Bread Company
As of March 31, 2015, there were 1,901 bakery-cafes in 45 states, the District of Columbia, and in Ontario, Canada, operating under the Panera Bread®, Saint Louis Bread Co.® or Paradise Bakery & Café® names. We feature high-quality, reasonably priced food in a warm, inviting and comfortable environment. With our identity rooted in handcrafted, fresh-baked, artisan bread, we are committed to providing great tasting, quality food that people can trust. Nearly all of our bakery-cafes have a menu highlighted by chicken raised without antibiotics, whole grain bread, and select organic and all-natural ingredients, with zero grams of artificial trans-fat per serving, which provide flavorful, wholesome offerings. Our menu includes a wide variety of year-round favorites complemented by new items introduced seasonally with the goal of creating new standards in everyday food choices. In neighborhoods across the United States and in Ontario, Canada, our customers enjoy our warm and welcoming environment featuring comfortable gathering areas, relaxing decor and free Internet access. Our bakery-cafes routinely donate bread and baked goods to community organizations in need. Additional information is available on our website, http://www.panerabread.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
Matters discussed in this news release and in our public disclosures, whether written or oral, relating to future events or our future performance, including any discussion, express or implied, regarding future earnings growth, operating results, plans, objectives, future earnings per share, and the impact of our investments in sales-building initiatives and operational capabilities on future sales and earnings, contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These statements are often identified by the words “believe,” “positioned,” “estimate,” “project,” “target,” “plan,” “goal,” “assumption,” “continue,” “intend,” “expect,” “future,” “anticipate,” and other similar expressions, whether in the negative or the affirmative, that are not statements of historical fact. These forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve certain risks, uncertainties, and assumptions that are difficult to predict, and you should not place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements. Our actual results and timing of certain events could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of certain factors, including, but not limited to, those discussed from time to time in our reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 30, 2014 and our quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. All forward-looking statements and the internal projections and beliefs upon which we base our expectations included in this release are made only as of the date of this release and may change. While we may elect to update forward-looking statements at some point in the future, we expressly disclaim any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.
Contact:
Mike Bufano
Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer
Panera Bread
mike.bufano@panerabread.com