St. Louis Bread was founded by Ken Rosenthal in 1987 when he opened the first location in Kirkwood, Missouri. In 1993, Au Bon Pain Co. purchased the St. Louis Bread Company. In 1997, Au Bon Pain changed the company name to Panera, a word that has roots meaning "bread basket '' in Latin. At the same time, the St. Louis Bread Company was renovating its 20 bakery - cafés in the St. Louis area.
when did st louis bread company become panera
1997