Ashley Wallace

Ashley Wallace started with Panera in 2014 and quickly climbed the ranks to her position as General Manager of our Gahanna café in Columbus, Ohio. Current Columbus District Manager, Colton Meier, recruited Ashely for an assistant manager position at the Polaris café, in which he was the General Manager at the time. “Ashley and I instantly hit it off,” said Colton. “When I think of Ashley I think of a leader, role model and someone that I can trust day in and day out. I personally would not be where I am at today in my Panera journey if it weren’t for her. Ashley deserves this recognition, and I couldn’t be prouder or more privileged to work by her side.”

Ashley consistently has a clean and staffed café with exceptional service, and she continues to grow her sales each period. But her drive and work ethic extend beyond the 4 walls of her café, as she is someone the market can count on regardless of the task at hand. She has been Colton’s right hand person since the day she started, opening 2 other Columbus cafés with him, Nationwide Children’s Hospital and Morse Road. She also trained 10+ Managers in his district and fills in for other General Managers when they are out on vacation. Ashley was voted 2020 Training Manager of the Year in the Columbus market.