JAB Holding, the private equity parent of Panera, Pret a Manger, and others, has tapped former RBI CEO Jose Cil to work as chairman of its restaurant concepts.
In the U.S., he will oversee Panera Brands, comprising Panera, Caribou Coffee, and Einstein Bros. Bagels. In the U.K., Cil will also oversee Pret a Manger and Espresso House in Scandinavia, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Joining Cil on the board as new members are Neil Golden, Buck Jordan, Andre Molinari, James Pappas, Emiliano Román and José Tomás. Existing board members Gerhard Pleuhs and David Deno will continue to serve.
“Panera Bread, Einstein Bros. and Caribou Coffee are three widely beloved brands with incredible growth potential,” Cil said in a statement. “I look forward to working closely with the Board, Paul and his management team to build a high-performance culture at Panera with a guest-first mindset and to stay laser-focused on delivering great guest experiences while serving high-quality and innovative food at a good value.”
Panera Brands has seen at least four chairmen in the past two years, including former Panera CEO Niren Chaudhary, former Krispy Kreme CEO Mike Tattersfield, former Starbucks CFO Patrick Grismer, and now Cil.
Panera Brands had previously named Grismer as board chair in November. Two months ago, it named former CFO Paul Carbone as its new CEO, the chain’s third chief executive in two years.
For years, the group has sought trading on the stock market. Initially, the company planned to go public through a merger with Danny Meyer’s special purpose acquisition company, but that deal collapsed due to unfavorable market conditions ahead of a July 2022 deadline. Later in 2023, the company confidentially filed for an IPO, aiming for a 2024 market debut, though that never materialized.
Panera Brands also reportedly explored selling off its Caribou Coffee and Einstein Bros. divisions, with Bank of America overseeing the process. Potential buyers, including private equity firms and restaurant operators, expressed interest.
JAB Holding purchased Panera for $7.5 billion in 2017 and took it private. Caribou was acquired for $340 million in 2012, and Einstein Noah Restaurant Group was bought for $374 million in 2014.
Panera finished 2024 with more than 2,200 units after adding a net of 35 locations. Last year, the fast casual overhauled its menu and recently launched a new marketing campaign called “It Just Meals Good,”—an attempt to show guests the brand has menu items that fit any occasion.
Cil spent four years as CEO of RBI, the parent of Burger King, Firehouse Subs, Tim Hortons, and Popeyes. Before that, he worked as president of Burger King for four years. Under his tenure as CEO, RBI acquired Firehouse for $1 billion and Burger King kicked off its Reclaim the Flame multi-year transformational plan.
According to the Journal, JAB said it brought Cil on board to use his experience managing global brands and to support the growth of its fast-casual restaurant portfolio. Cil told the publication that his priorities would include making sure the restaurant chains have strong strategic plans, the right talent, and sufficient capital. He emphasized the importance of offering customers high-quality experiences and good value.
