Presence and Pioneers
Panera Bread founder Ron Shaich had the presence to sense trends and the pioneering spirit to respond to them.
In 1985, Shaich was in the store, serving customers. A customer asked: “Could I get that baguette sliced?” He watched as she put roasted turkey and cheese inside the baguette. “You didn't have to be a Harvard MBA to say, "Wow, the baguette isn’t the product; it's a platform to sell sandwiches.”
Shaich’s perspective changed by being present.
He began serving sandwiches on fresh bread and croissants. Au Bon Pain took off. Shaich recalls the second day he opened in Boston's Copley Place—50 people lined up before the doors opened. Busy urban professionals loved the fast access to high-quality sandwiches.
This was the dawn of the fast-casual restaurant market, a cross between fast food and fine dining. In 2019, fast-casual was a $125 billion dollar market. Chipotle, Five Guys, and Moe’s are well known in the category today.
Shaich helped pioneer a market by being present.
Christa Funk, Scenic Gallery. Oahu.
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