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Panera Bread expands delivery service nationwide

The company started deliveries in some markets two years ago.

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Panera Bread has been delivering lunch and dinner on demand to customers in some areas since 2016. Now, the delivery program is expanding to 897 cities across 43 states, so it might be easier for you to get that sandwich hookup.

You can place orders through the Panera app or website as long as you live within roughly an eight-minute drive of participating outlets. Delivery is typically available between 11AM and 8PM, so long as you meet the $5 minimum order; there's also a $3 delivery fee in most areas.

Panera wants to take full control of its delivery process, and by the end of 2017 had hired more than 10,000 drivers and other employees to handle the increase in orders caused by deliveries. Digital orders now account for 30 percent of Panera's sales, so it clearly sees plenty of room to expand its delivery foothold.

However, some customers might be wary of ordering Panera Bread online after a security oversight left millions of customers' details exposed. There was no payment information among the data, though the breach may have hurt consumer confidence in the company just before the nationwide delivery rollout.