Episode description:

Panera Brands announced that José Alberto Dueñas will be the company’s CEO, effective July 1, as the company prepares for its IPO. Dueñas is currently the president and CEO of Einstein Bros. Bagels, which merged with Panera Bread, along with Caribou Coffee, in August 2021.

With this announcement, Panera’s current CEO Niren Chaudhary will move into the chairman position. The company has also named former Starbucks CEO and independent director Patrick Grismer as chairman of the audit committee.

An IPO will bring Panera back to the public market for a second time. The company was public until 2017 when it was bought by JAB Holdings.