Introduction
If you analyzed the restaurant industry using Porter's five forces model, you wouldn't be favorably impressed. Three of the threats to profitabilitythe threat of substitutes, the threat of new entrants, and rivalry among existing firmsare high. Despite these threats to industry profitability, one restaurant chain is moving forward in a very positive direction. St. Louisbased Panera Bread Company, a chain of specialty bakery-cafés, has grown from 602 company owned and franchised units in 2003 to over 877 today. In 2005 alone, its sales increased by 33.6% and its net income increased by 35.2%. So what's Panera's secret? How is it that this company flourishes while its industry as a whole is experiencing difficulty? As we'll see, Panera Bread's success can be explained in two words: positioning and execution.
Changing Consumer Tastes
Panera's roots go back to 1981, when it was founded under the name of Au Bon Pain Co. and consisted of three Au Bon Pain......
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Approximate Word Count: 827
Approximate Pages: 4 (260 words per double-spaced page) |