Panera Expands Pay-What-You-Can Concept

The fast-casual chain is adding a pay-what-you-can item to the menu at its St. Louis stores.

June 06, 2013

NEW YORK – Three years into a pilot program of its pay-what-you-can concept, Panera Bread Co. is testing a pay-what-you-can item, the Wall Street Journal reports.

The fast-casual chain is launching the initiative for turkey chili in a bread bowl at its for-profit St. Louis stores, with the hope that a successful run would expand the concept to all of its 1,700 outlets.

Panera’s co-CEO Ron Shaich said the company’s pay-what-you-can stores, called Panera Cares, has been a “roller coaster of an experience. People came up to me and began talking about the fact that they had been customers for 5-10 years and had lost their jobs. And how appreciated it was. There were occasionally people who tried to beat it, or game it. So ultimately it was a test of human nature.”

Shaich said the company will serve more than 1 million people this year at those cafes, with 20% of customers leaving more than the suggested donation, 60% leaving the suggested donation, and 20% leaving less than the suggested donation.

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