Bakery Cafes Expanding in Florida

ORLANDO-The soup-and-sandwich concept of successful national fast-bakery firms such as Panera Bread Co. of Richmond Heights, MO is triggering expansion plans totaling an estimated 220,000 sf in metro Orlando and throughout Florida from competitors Atlanta Bread Co. of Smyrna, GA and Jason’s Deli of Addison, TX. The expansions are scheduled over the next five years.

The company’s Web sites confirm Atlanta Bread plans to add a third location in July at the MetroWest community in southwest Orlando. Atlanta Bread has existing locations at the mixed-use communities of Hunter’s Creek and Waterford Lakes.

Company officials couldn’t be reached at GlobeSt.com’s publication deadline to learn development costs and size of the projects. But area retail brokers familiar with the on-site bakery and sandwich operations tell GlobeSt.com the Atlanta Bread locations will be about 7,000 sf each or a total 210,000 sf for all 30 outlets and about 70,000 sf total in the Orlando area.

Jason’s Deli plans to open its first metro Orlando site in suburban Altamonte Springs. Joint owners Joe Tortorice, Pete Verde, Pat Broussard and Rusty Coco couldn’t be reached at GlobeSt.com’s publication deadline. But area construction industry estimators tell GlobeSt.com the Altamonte Springs store could be up to 10,000 sf.

The estimated store sizes of Atlanta Bread and Jason Deli would be larger than the average 4,800-sf Panera Bread is currently working out of at 10 new outlets opened last year in metro Orlando. “We don’t need it much larger than that to operate soundly,” Gavin Ford, Panera’s largest franchise operator in Florida, tells GlobeSt.com.

Panera has 369 locations in 30 states totaling an estimated 1.85 million sf. The company owns and operates 110 units and franchises 259 locations.