Dive Brief:
- Panera Brands CEO José Alberto Dueñas has stepped down from his role, but will serve as special advisor to the company through the end of March, Panera Brands said Tuesday in a press release. Panera Brands includes Panera Bread, Caribou Coffee and Einstein Bros.
- The company’s chief financial officer, Paul Carbone, has been named interim CEO effective immediately, while Panera’s board of directors searches for a replacement among internal and external candidates. Carbone has been with Panera since 2023.
- Dueñas became CEO of Panera Brands in 2023 after serving as president and CEO of Einstein Bros. for about four years.
Dive Insight:
While Panera Brands searches for a replacement, it will rely on Carbone’s experience, which includes a long stint as CFO at Dunkin’ Brands as well as periods as CFO for Yeti Holdings and SharkNinja.
“Paul is a well-respected industry veteran with a tremendous track record of success, and I look forward to continue working with him as he assumes the role of interim CEO and advances our strategies to further strengthen Panera and ignite new-unit development,” said Patrick Grismer, Panera Brands’ board chair, in a statement.
Dueñas oversaw a near-total menu transformation at Panera Bread, which occurred in several phases over the last year. He also helped improve restaurant-level margins and enhance “organizational agility,” Grismer said. All of these strategic changes helped prepare the company for long-term growth, Grismer added.
In the years following JAB’s 2021 spinoff of Panera Brands, the company has undergone a handful of leadership changes as part of plans to go public. Panera Brands changed up its board leadership twice in 2023 — former Panera Bread CEO Niren Chaudhary became chairman of the board in May 2023, and Michael Tattersfield, former Krispy Kreme CEO, then took the role in September 2023. Later that year, the company cut 17% of its corporate staff.
In November 2024, Panera Brands updated its board again when Grismer, previous Starbucks CFO and lead independent director of Panera Brands, became the board chairman.The company announced at the time that the changes to the board, which included the appointment of former Bloomin’ Brands CEO David Deno, was part of the company’s plans for its “next phase of growth.” Unlike previous company statements, the press release didn’t mention its IPO plans, which could indicate that plans to go public are on hold or off the table.
