First in coffee, future in food: Building a food program worth of the original craft coffee.
6%
MORE WARM FOOD ITEMS SOLD PER COFFEEBAR, PER DAY
+10.2%
BAKERY SALES LIFT IN PILOT, AHEAD OF NATIONAL ROLLOUT
+20%
YOY SALES LIFT IN GRAB & GO
465+
COFFEEBARS ON ONE NATIONAL PROGRAM IN ~9 MOS.
What was Peet’s goal in working with TCE?
Peet’s had built one of the strongest reputations in coffee, but its food hadn’t kept pace. Their food case held a mix of familiar bakery and breakfast items that did the job without saying much about the brand. Guests trusted Peet’s to be particular about coffee; nothing in the food case gave them a reason to expect the same.
The market was also shifting. Coffee chain visits grew 1.8% in early 2025, but nearly all of that growth went to newer, faster-growing chains.. Placer.ai interpreted the shift as guests using their limited budgets for distinctive treats over classic drinks and pastries. For a heritage brand like Peet’s, a conventional food case was becoming a liability.
That gap mattered more after Coffee for Coffee People launched in 2023. A brand that publicly holds itself to a higher standard needs every part of the visit to live up to it. Together, we aligned upon developing a food program that could:
Reinforce Peet’s premium credentials rather than simply fill a daypart.
Create new reasons to visit through breakfast, afternoon, and grab-and-go.
Run consistently across a national footprint, with the suppliers and operations to match.
“Partnering with The Culinary Edge gave us the clarity and structure needed to evolve our food program while maintaining what makes Peet’s special.”
How did TCE identify the whitespace?
Most coffee chains lean on the same conventional bakery and breakfast lineup — exactly the kind of offer guests were drifting away from. We saw that Peet’s had permission to do more: elevated ingredients, distinctive formats, and food just as bold as the coffee. Premium appeal and visual impact became the two filters for everything that followed, without losing sight of what a busy coffee bar team can actually execute.
How did TCE build Peet’s bakery program?
The audit. We started with the existing menu and looked at every item through four lenses: brand fit, guest relevance, financial performance, and operational feasibility. That told us what to keep, what to improve, and what to retire. It also revealed gaps, and an entire daypart the menu wasn’t serving: savory pastries, afternoon snacks, and hearty, vegetable-forward options.
The validation. Before anything reached a test kitchen, we used a TURF analysis to shape the portfolio, making sure the final lineup covered the most guest needs with the fewest items. Only then did concepts move into development.
The products. With a clear program identity in place, we developed products alongside supplier partners, from benchtop samples through commercialization. Every item was pressure-tested for scale, manufacturing feasibility, and how it would hold up in a real coffee bar.
The rollout. The program reached guests in phases. A rebuilt grab-and-go cooler launched in April 2025. New warm food items followed throughout the year, including the Bacon Sausage Cheddar Crispy and Cheesy Sausage Slider. A new bakery program went national in January 2026 after a pilot in Southern California, where the pastry portfolio grew sharply, led by Danishes. The lifecycle from first launch to a national bakery program took about nine months.
What were the results of Peet’s partnership with TCE?
Each phase strengthened its category while coffee costs boosted across the industry, bringing greater value to the buying decisions of guests .
Grab-and-go sales up 20% year over year after the rebuilt cooler program launched in April 2025.
Daily increase in warm food sales. Units per coffee bar rose ~6% alongside a 13.5% sales lift, in a year when Starbucks’ U.S. transactions fell 1%.
Bakery sales rose 10.2% in the pilot, led by a new Danish line, at a moment when guests were reportedly moving away from classic pastries.
Growth against a flat field. Coffee traffic gains in 2025 went to newer chains, while the two largest players lost visits; Starbucks’ U.S. comparable sales were flat as of fiscal Q4 in 2025.
Food is now part of how Peet’s builds loyalty — its 2026 Cold Brew Pass rewards members with double points when they add a warm food or pastry.
Coffee for coffee people now comes with food worth staying for — built alongside a team that knows exactly what it stands for.
Sources & Further Reading
Partnership announcement: QSR Magazine — Peet’s Coffee Partners with The Culinary Edge to Reimagine Food Offerings
Brand platform: Marketing Dive — Peet’s Coffee brews large integrated campaign with Mischief
Peet’s performance: Global Coffee Report — JDE Peet’s reports strong full-year results for 2024
Market traffic: Placer.ai — Dutch Bros Gains, But Starbucks Holds Top Spot
Benchmark: Starbucks — Q4 and Full Fiscal Year 2025 Results
Loyalty: Foodservice News — Peet’s Coffee Launches Fall LTO Menu Across 465+ Locations
Published: October 2026
Category results per Peet’s Coffee reporting following each phase of the rollout; unit figures rounded. Benchmark and traffic figures from public company filings and Placer.ai.