- Bruegger's
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Bruegger's Enterprises, Inc. 
Type Subsidiary Founded 1983 in Troy, New York Headquarters Burlington, Vermont, United States Key people James J. Greco, CEO
Nordahl Brue, Founder
Michael Dressell, FounderProducts Fast casual/Bakery-café, including several varieties of bagels and muffins, cold sandwiches, salads, and soups Revenue 
$254.5 million USD (2010)Employees 3,374 full/part time Parent Groupe Le Duff Website brueggers.com Bruegger's Enterprises, Inc., and wholly owned subsidiary Threecaf Brands Canada, Inc., are franchisers and operators of Bruegger's bakery-cafés, Timothy's World Coffee, mmmuffins, and Michel's Baguette.
Bruegger's brand restaurants serve bagels, breads, coffee, specialty drinks, soups, salads, sandwiches, wraps, paninis, desserts, fresh fruit and a large variety of other related items.[1] They produce approximately 70 million bagels each year, and are the holders of the Guinness World Record for producing the world's largest bagel.[2] Bruegger's operates approximately 300 restaurants in 26 states, the District of Columbia, and Canada.
Contents
Corporate history
Bruegger's was founded in 1983 by Nordahl Brue and Mike Dressell, with the first store opening in Troy, New York.
The business was bought by Quality Dining (a franchisee) in June 1996 for $142 million in stock, with the founders joining the Quality Dining board. However the merge was not a comfortable one, within a short period Brue and Dressell became concerned with the ongoing operations and scope for growth, leading to a critical U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing alleging a lack of strategic direction. Holding a combined 26% stake, Brue and Dressell called for reorganization of Quality Dining, resulting in Bruegger's being resold to Brue and Dressel in October 1997 for $45 millon.[3] Brue has since referred to the original sale as part of his "biggest mistake".[4]
In May 2003, James J. Greco and Sun Capital Partners acquired the company from the founders.
Today, approximately 300 Bruegger's locations operate in 26 U.S. states, the District of Columbia, and Canada. The company is headquartered in Burlington, Vermont and James J. Greco serves as CEO. Bruegger's announced $200 million in revenue in 2008.
On November 13, 2009, Bruegger's purchased the retail operations of Timothy's World Coffee, mmmuffins, and Michel's Baguette through a wholly owned subsidiary called ThreeCaf Brands Canada, Inc.[5] Bruegger's intends to continue operations of all three brands. The three brands combined operate approximately 140 locations throughout Canada.[6]
On March 17, 2011, the French Le Duff group announced the buyout of Bruegger's. Le Duff already has a U.S. presence with its La Madeleine brand, which has 60 units domestically. Le Duff plans to "Francify" some Bruegger's locations and will combine other units with Brioche Dorée outlets. [7]
The original Bruegger's in Troy, New York.
Menu
Bruegger's offers fresh hot bagels, unique coffee blends, specialty sandwiches, paninis, fresh-made salads, carb-friendly wraps, deli style sandwiches, soups, desserts and original cream cheese in an assortment of flavors.
Bruegger's is best known for its best-selling product, a variety of authentic New York-style, water boiled bagels that are baked fresh and served hot. The bagels come in a variety of 17 different base flavors and in seasonal varieties. Many Bruegger's bakeries feature viewing areas where customers can see how the bagels are made.
World record
On August 27, 2004, Bruegger's created the World's Largest Bagel, which currently holds the Guinness World Record. The bagel weighed in at 868 pounds and required 1,100 pounds of dough, 900 gallons of water, and a bake time of 10 hours. It was cooked at the New York State Fair and was sliced and served to onlookers, who were encouraged to make a donation that would benefit local area food banks.[2]
See also
- Fast casual restaurant
References
- ^ Bruegger's menu
- ^ a b Business wire report on record bagel
- ^ The bagel debacle
- ^ Nordahl Brue: My Biggest Mistake
- ^ Nation's Restaurant News
- ^ Canadian Timothys
- ^ Hausmann, Daniel (3/18/2011). "Sun Capital Gets 13x Return After Bruegger's Turnaround". Wall Street Journal. http://blogs.wsj.com/privateequity/2011/03/18/sun-capital-gets-13x-return-after-brueggers-turnaround/?mod=google_news_blog. Retrieved 21 March 2011.
External links
Categories:- Companies based in Vermont
- Food companies of the United States
- Bakery/café restaurants
- Restaurant franchises
- Bakeries of the United States
- Private equity portfolio companies
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