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Ron Shaich: Lessons from Building Panera
Manage episode 518883748 series 2349888
My guest today is Ron Shaich, founder of Panera and chairman of CAVA.
The headlines will tell you that Ron built Panera into a $7.8 billion company. But the real story is far more interesting.
He went all in on Panera. He sold off every other concept they owned, like Au Bon Pain, to focus on on Panera.
His philosophy is simple: Be long-term greedy, not short-term stupid.
We discuss why profit is always a byproduct (focus on it and you'll lose everything), how to understand the customer, and the real costs of building something great. Today he's repeating the same playbook he used at Panera with CAVA.
At 71, he tracks his glucose continuously and works out every morning at 8am. He runs quarterly reviews on his life with the same discipline he brought to building companies.
This isn't about restaurants. It's about making painful bets when everyone else is optimizing for next quarter, and understanding that real commitment owns you—you never own it.
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Thank you to the sponsors for this episode:
reMarkable: Get your paper tablet at https://www.reMarkable.com today
.tech domains: Nothing says tech like being on .tech https://get.tech/
Shopify: https://shopify.com/knowledgeproject
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Upgrade: Get a hand edited transcripts and ad free experiences along with my thoughts and reflections at the end of every conversation. Learn more @ fs.blog/membership
------
Newsletter: The Brain Food newsletter delivers actionable insights and thoughtful ideas every Sunday. It takes 5 minutes to read, and it’s completely free. Learn more and sign up at fs.blog/newsletter
------
Follow Shane Parrish
X @ShaneAParrish
Insta @farnamstreet
LinkedIn Shane Parrish
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
255 episodes
Manage episode 518883748 series 2349888
My guest today is Ron Shaich, founder of Panera and chairman of CAVA.
The headlines will tell you that Ron built Panera into a $7.8 billion company. But the real story is far more interesting.
He went all in on Panera. He sold off every other concept they owned, like Au Bon Pain, to focus on on Panera.
His philosophy is simple: Be long-term greedy, not short-term stupid.
We discuss why profit is always a byproduct (focus on it and you'll lose everything), how to understand the customer, and the real costs of building something great. Today he's repeating the same playbook he used at Panera with CAVA.
At 71, he tracks his glucose continuously and works out every morning at 8am. He runs quarterly reviews on his life with the same discipline he brought to building companies.
This isn't about restaurants. It's about making painful bets when everyone else is optimizing for next quarter, and understanding that real commitment owns you—you never own it.
-----
Thank you to the sponsors for this episode:
reMarkable: Get your paper tablet at https://www.reMarkable.com today
.tech domains: Nothing says tech like being on .tech https://get.tech/
Shopify: https://shopify.com/knowledgeproject
-----
Upgrade: Get a hand edited transcripts and ad free experiences along with my thoughts and reflections at the end of every conversation. Learn more @ fs.blog/membership
------
Newsletter: The Brain Food newsletter delivers actionable insights and thoughtful ideas every Sunday. It takes 5 minutes to read, and it’s completely free. Learn more and sign up at fs.blog/newsletter
------
Follow Shane Parrish
X @ShaneAParrish
Insta @farnamstreet
LinkedIn Shane Parrish
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
255 episodes
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