Liz Fiorino
Covelli Enterprises
6693 Sawmill Road
Dublin, OH 43017
412-310-3323
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CEOs OF COVELLI ENTERPRISES AND OSU WEXNER MEDICAL CENTER CUT RIBBON AT NEW PANERA BREAD CAFÉ ON CAMPUS FRIDAY
Largest franchisee expands relationship with The Ohio State University with first ever location at OSU Medical Center
Sam Covelli, CEO of Covelli Enterprises and Dr. Sheldon Retchin, CEO of OSU Wexner Medical Center cut the ribbon at a formal event 10:00 a.m. Friday held at the new Panera Bread location at 451 W. 10th Avenue in the SAFEAUTO Garage near The Ross Heart Hospital and The James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute.
The new café, which opened its doors on February 2, is the third Panera Bread location on The Ohio State University campus for Covelli Enterprises, the largest franchisee of Panera Bread. The company currently operates more than 275 Panera Breads including locations on Lane Avenue and at the South Campus Gateway. Covelli Enterprises also operates 3 kiosk stores inside Ohio Stadium at Gates 19A, 20A and 22C. This is Covelli Enterprises’ first Panera Bread bakery-café within a medical center.
The February 2 opening was one of the largest in the history of Panera Bread in Central Ohio.
“We couldn’t be more proud of our relationship with The Ohio State University and its employees, so we are thrilled to expand that relationship with a third campus location and our first ever Panera Bread inside a major medical center,” said Sam Covelli, Owner/Operator of Covelli Enterprises. “We look forward to providing healthy food options in a clean, warm and friendly environment for all OSU Medical Center doctors, staff, and patients.”
The new Panera Bread at OSU Medical Center celebrated its opening with several special offers and giveaways, including free coffee refills for an entire month with the purchase of a $5 travel mug. The company also offers all OSU faculty and staff, including those who work at OSU Medical Center, a constant 10% discount at all Central Ohio Panera Bread locations every day.
The new 6,400 sq. ft. Panera Bread in the SAFEAUTO Garage is open weekdays 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. and weekends 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
In keeping with the company’s tradition of giving back to the communities it serves, the new Panera Bread will donate the unsold bread product each night to local non-profits, and it will collect donations at its registers for long-time partner, the Stefanie Spielman Fund, which funds life-saving breast cancer research at The James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute. Panera Bread is the presenting sponsor of the upcoming Step Up for Stefanie’s Champions Walk/Run to be held on April 23 at OSU’s Stefanie Spielman Comprehensive Breast Center.
More about Covelli Enterprises
Covelli Enterprises is the largest franchisee of Panera Bread, LLC with more than 275 bakery-cafés in Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Kentucky, Florida and Toronto, Canada. In 2015, the company donated more than $26 million to charity through unsold bread products for local hunger relief agencies and monetary donations to other non-profit organizations. www.covelli.com
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