Our Story

Le Bread Xpress Founder and CEO Benoit Herve moved to the US from France in 1998 and started seeking the hot, crusty, aromatic baguette from his youth. To Benoit, bread is not just sustenance, it’s an experience that touches sight, scent, and touch as much as taste. He didn’t want a reheated replica or a thin-skinned sandwich loaf in a fancy shape: he wanted to feel the steamy warmth as he broke open the heavy, crisped crust and savored the fresh yeasty flavor of the soft bread inside.

 

He coupled his cravings with decades of experience in engineering and entrepreneurship, leveraged existing manufacturing relationships and capabilities, and created the world’s first robotic micro-bakery. That first machine, the baguette-only Bread Xpress, was met with great acclaim and was a popular addition to retail sites in the Bay Area. 

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Customers wanted more than just bread, though. What about muffins, croissant, even pizza? Benoit leveraged the robotics and baking technology he'd designed for Bread Xpress and created Bake Xpress. Bake Xpress not only stores and custom bakes a full menu of meals and pastries, it adds sensor, AI, software, wireless, and power management technology to create an autonomous, free-standing, full-service bakery in the size of a traditional vending machine.

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Bake Xpress has grown in popularity and our customers find new ways to leverage its technology every day. Because of the flexibility of the solution, customers have added a broad range of foods, from baked goods and hot meals to refrigerated foods like salads. Our bakery partner in Houston installed a Bake Xpress like an ATM, facing the sidewalk outside the store and selling fresh baked goods around the clock. A charity in Dubai leveraged the technology to provide free food and collect donations. A pizza partner accelerated plans to open locations nationwide by installing Bake Xpress instead of building out costly brick-and-mortar stores.

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In each case, Bake Xpress is meeting demands of consumers for convenient, healthy meal options, while also resolving the labor and operational challenges faced by food service providers. We are truly revolutionizing the industry with our unique ability to replicate the in-restaurant experience in a free-standing unstaffed vending solution. 

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In 2022, we announced plans to broaden our focus and extend our technology to new applications. What's next? Stay tuned!

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