If you’ve visited the Panera Bread location in Clayton, MO, Portland, OR, or Dearborn, MI, you might have noticed something strange about the menu. There are no prices.
That’s right, no set prices for menu items. These 3 locations are actually non-profit community cafes called Panera Cares where customers choose what they would like to pay.
If you have money to spare, you can pay more than the typical price for your meal, but if you have nothing to offer you can still eat. The cafe is not a “soup kitchen,” though, it is a way for members of the community to help one another when in need. If someone cannot pay at all, they are not denied a meal, but they are urged to donate their time. They are also using the store as a way provide job/skills training to disadvantaged youth.
The 3 locations were chosen strategically. They were placed in reasonably affluent neighborhoods with access to public transportation, which has allowed for a diverse clientele.
At these 3 locations, Panera Bread Foundation has found that about 20% of people pay more than the retail price for their meal while 20% pay less. About 60% of people pay roughly the original retail value. Within a few months of the first store opening, Panera Cares turned a profit (which they reinvest in skills training).
Who would have thought that removing the price from a menu would result in people paying more than the item is worth? This is a great example of an organization thinking differently about how to approach a problem like feeding the needy.
Panera already donates between $100-150 Million in products each year by donating their “less fresh” baked goods to charitable organizations. The Panera Cares cafe is just one more example of how this organization continues to take care of the community through healthy meals, discounted or free items, and skills training.
Kudos to Panera for “thinking differently.”
How can you make a difference today?
(image source credit to Tim A. Parker of USA Today)