Articles
June 24, 2025
Andrea Cherng: Turning disruption into opportunity
Panda's Chief Brand Officer talks about meeting challenges of today’s changing business landscape.
Cherng told the audience that at the end of 2023, Panda made the strategic—and successful—decision to sharpen its focus on its core menu offerings.
This year, Panda Restaurant Group is expected to earn more than $6.2 billion in sales, making it one of the largest restaurant brands in North America. Andrea Cherng, its Chief Brand Officer and daughter of co-CEOs Andrew and Peggy Cherng, calls the company’s success an “American Dream come true.”
At the National Restaurant Association’s Supply Chain Spring Conference, Cherng told attendees that Panda, which started out as a single “mom-and-pop” restaurant, is now a global brand with 2,500 stores, but always poised to reinvent itself when necessary.
Tell us about Panda’s history.
Panda Restaurant Group started as a single restaurant in Pasadena, CA, opened by my grandfather, Master Chef Ming-Tsai Cherng, and my father, Andrew Cherng, in 1973. My father loves to tell the story of how, in the early years, he used to chase people down the street just to get them to try the restaurant. He expected it to be an instant success, but it wasn’t. It took four years of learning what our customers really wanted, analyzing competitors, and refining our menu and approach before we found success. Today, we’ve grown to 2,500 restaurants and 55,000 associates.
It’s been an incredible journey. While we’ve grown and evolved, we remain grounded in the same principles that shaped us from the beginning. Our values reflect those of my parents: a deep respect for heritage, a relentless drive to move forward, and a deep caring for the people who make everything possible. We are committed to creating pathways to opportunity for everyone, which results in the growth of our people, teams, and brand. Though we’re rooted in our origins as a family-run business, those very values inspire us to keep moving forward—adapting, innovating, and striving to meet the changing needs of the world around us.
How does Panda stay competitive and remain relevant?
We’re seeing more Limited Time Offers (LTOs) flooding the market than ever before. We’re also navigating challenges, like value wars, tariffs, and the rapid rise of AI—whether we’re ready for it or not.
In these uncertain and disruptive times, it’s more important than ever to embrace openness and a willingness to learn. We have a choice: do we approach these challenges with firm conviction, or do we lean into curiosity? It’s curiosity that opens the door to reinvention. Are we curious enough to rethink and reshape our own game? And are our suppliers and partners walking that path with us?
We need honest conversations about how the consumer landscape and our category are evolving. Only by understanding these shifts can we create new, effective approaches that meet the moment and set us up to thrive.
How do you attract customers in such a challenging environment?
Building trust and genuinely understanding your consumers’ needs is essential for long-term success. Without this foundation, sustained growth can become challenging. Consumers today define value differently than they did even six months ago. If we focus solely on price, but overlook the brand experience, it may solve our current sales challenges but leaves the question of future sales growth unanswered.
What are some big changes Panda is working on?
At the end of 2023, we made the strategic decision to sharpen our focus on our core menu offerings. We’re best known for our Panda Plates — classic two-item combos like half chow mein and half fried rice, paired with a double serving of our Original Orange Chicken. Our priority was to elevate the quality of every plate because that’s what our consumers value most: better quality and stronger value for the price.
How is the brand reinventing itself?
As we stepped into 2024 and competition intensified, we recognized the need to rethink how we engage our guests. Our response was twofold: enhance our core offerings and introduce more LTOs than ever before. This spirit of reinvention continues to drive us today. We approach this moment with curiosity and commitment, focused on evolving in ways that better meet the changing needs and expectations of our customers and fuel our future growth.
At the National Restaurant Association’s Supply Chain Spring Conference, Cherng told attendees that Panda, which started out as a single “mom-and-pop” restaurant, is now a global brand with 2,500 stores, but always poised to reinvent itself when necessary.
Tell us about Panda’s history.
Panda Restaurant Group started as a single restaurant in Pasadena, CA, opened by my grandfather, Master Chef Ming-Tsai Cherng, and my father, Andrew Cherng, in 1973. My father loves to tell the story of how, in the early years, he used to chase people down the street just to get them to try the restaurant. He expected it to be an instant success, but it wasn’t. It took four years of learning what our customers really wanted, analyzing competitors, and refining our menu and approach before we found success. Today, we’ve grown to 2,500 restaurants and 55,000 associates.
It’s been an incredible journey. While we’ve grown and evolved, we remain grounded in the same principles that shaped us from the beginning. Our values reflect those of my parents: a deep respect for heritage, a relentless drive to move forward, and a deep caring for the people who make everything possible. We are committed to creating pathways to opportunity for everyone, which results in the growth of our people, teams, and brand. Though we’re rooted in our origins as a family-run business, those very values inspire us to keep moving forward—adapting, innovating, and striving to meet the changing needs of the world around us.
How does Panda stay competitive and remain relevant?
We’re seeing more Limited Time Offers (LTOs) flooding the market than ever before. We’re also navigating challenges, like value wars, tariffs, and the rapid rise of AI—whether we’re ready for it or not.
In these uncertain and disruptive times, it’s more important than ever to embrace openness and a willingness to learn. We have a choice: do we approach these challenges with firm conviction, or do we lean into curiosity? It’s curiosity that opens the door to reinvention. Are we curious enough to rethink and reshape our own game? And are our suppliers and partners walking that path with us?
We need honest conversations about how the consumer landscape and our category are evolving. Only by understanding these shifts can we create new, effective approaches that meet the moment and set us up to thrive.
How do you attract customers in such a challenging environment?
Building trust and genuinely understanding your consumers’ needs is essential for long-term success. Without this foundation, sustained growth can become challenging. Consumers today define value differently than they did even six months ago. If we focus solely on price, but overlook the brand experience, it may solve our current sales challenges but leaves the question of future sales growth unanswered.
What are some big changes Panda is working on?
At the end of 2023, we made the strategic decision to sharpen our focus on our core menu offerings. We’re best known for our Panda Plates — classic two-item combos like half chow mein and half fried rice, paired with a double serving of our Original Orange Chicken. Our priority was to elevate the quality of every plate because that’s what our consumers value most: better quality and stronger value for the price.
How is the brand reinventing itself?
As we stepped into 2024 and competition intensified, we recognized the need to rethink how we engage our guests. Our response was twofold: enhance our core offerings and introduce more LTOs than ever before. This spirit of reinvention continues to drive us today. We approach this moment with curiosity and commitment, focused on evolving in ways that better meet the changing needs and expectations of our customers and fuel our future growth.
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