A Beloved Bakery Chain Is Making a Comeback From Bankruptcy
From Red Lobster to Rubio's Coastal Grill, a handful of iconic restaurant chains are facing bankruptcy in 2024 as they contend with declining sales, closures, rising costs, and other financial woes. On the flip side, a beloved bakery chain has been breaking out of bankruptcy and making a promising comeback.
Corner Bakery Cafe just reopened a Chicago location that was shuttered in March of 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Nation's Restaurant News reported. The fast-casual restaurant—located near Union Station at 444 W. Jackson Blvd.—has a patio, ordering kiosks, and grab-and-go items for customers on the move.
This is the chain's sixth Chicago store and 14th in Illinois overall. After the opening, Corner Bakery's footprint now comprises 101 total restaurants.
While new store openings from chain restaurants are far from uncommon, the revival of the Corner Bakery store is a big deal considering that the company's future looked somewhat uncertain about a year ago.
Corner Bakery filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February 2023, a move meant to keep the chain in business as it reorganized tens of millions of dollars in debt. In June 2023, just a few months later, restaurant and real estate operator SSCP Management bought the company out of bankruptcy.
The new owner began overhauling the Corner Bakery business soon after by bringing in a new executive team, enhancing its employee training programs, and tapping the marketing agency Champion to help promote its brand. These changes already appear to be working just as intended. Corner Bakery shared an update on its revitalization efforts in February, revealing that average unit volumes (the sales each individual store sees on average) had increased by $200,000 in the previous six months.
The reopening of the shuttered Chicago store is further proof that Corner Bakery's comeback efforts are taking hold.
"As a Chicagoan myself, I could not be more thrilled about this new chapter for our brand and bringing back this iconic and bustling location to life," Corner Bakery Cafe President Erin Hasselgren said in a statement to Nation's Restaurant News.
Corner Bakery said in February that it expects to open a total of five to seven new restaurants in 2024, which is "a prelude to an accelerated growth trajectory beyond the current year." It also has plans to remodel most of its corporate-owned stores in the coming months. So, keep an eye out just in case a brand-new or new-and-improved Corner Bakery store pops up in your area soon.
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