Panera Bread CEO Steps Down Amid Ongoing Efforts to Go Public
Panera Bread’s parent company, Panera Brands, announced on Tuesday that CEO Jose Dueñas is stepping down, effective immediately. Dueñas, who took over as CEO in July 2023, will remain with the company as a special advisor until the end of March.
CFO Paul Carbone will assume the role of interim chief executive while the board searches for a permanent replacement to lead the company, which owns Panera Bread, Einstein Bros., and Caribou Coffee. Dueñas had previously led Einstein Bros. for four years before becoming CEO of Panera Brands.
The change in leadership comes as the company continues to face challenges in its efforts to go public, including a series of hurdles over the past few years. JAB Holding, the investment arm of the Reimann family, acquired Panera Bread in 2017 for $7.5 billion and took it private. JAB subsequently formed Panera Brands with some of its other acquisitions.
In 2022, Panera abandoned a deal with Danny Meyer’s special purpose acquisition company, citing market conditions. The company later confidentially filed for an initial public offering (IPO) in December 2023, but has yet to complete the process. The company has been impacted by lawsuits related to its heavily caffeinated Charged Lemonade, a challenging year for the restaurant industry, and a sluggish IPO market in 2024.