Food & Restaurant

Panda Express

Founded by Andrew Cherng, born in China, and Peggy Cherng, born in Myanmar (Burma)

2,600+ locations · ~55,000 employees · $6.2B annual revenue

The Founder’s Story

Andrew and Peggy Cherng opened their first restaurant in Pasadena in 1983. Both remain Co-CEOs of the company today, with their daughter Andrea also active in the business.

Real Impact

Employment

Pays at least $0.50/hour above the local minimum wage nationwide, plus stock options, a 401(k) match up to 4%, and educational stipends up to $2,000/year. [Panda Express Newsroom]
Ran a nationwide hiring event creating openings for 4,000+ people across 400+ locations. [Panda Express Newsroom]

Locally Sourced Products

We couldn’t verify a specific public program here. If you know of one, tell us.

Charitable & Community Work

Panda Cares and the Cherng family gave $2 million to Feeding America’s COVID-19 response in March 2020. [PR Newswire]
Pledged up to $2 million to the American Red Cross for 2023 Hawaii wildfire relief, and fed 600+ first responders and community members from its Maui stores. [Panda Express]
The Panda Cares Scholars Program with UNCF has awarded tiered scholarships ($2,500–$7,000) aiming to support 600+ low-income students. [UNCF]
Its DonorsChoose partnership has funded $2.3 million in classroom resources across 150+ Panda Express communities. [Yahoo Finance]

Sources: Wikipedia · Entrepreneur · Panda Express Newsroom · PR Newswire · Panda Express · UNCF · Yahoo Finance

Think we got something wrong, or know more about Panda Express’s community impact? Let us know.