HORSHAM, Pa. — On January 15, Thomas’® Bagels will invite bagel lovers to join in the celebration of the “hole-iest” food holiday – National Bagel Day – as they bring free bagels, pop-up celebrations and giveaways to five cities across the United States. National Bagel Day will serve as the official kickoff to a year of celebration in honor of the iconic Thomas’ brand’s 140th anniversary. “Dough-voted” Thomas’ fans in Chicago, Denver, Los Angeles, Orlando and Philadelphia can look to grab a free bagel and cream cheese from 7 a.m. – 1 p.m. and fill their “knead” for the iconic breakfast staple by visiting Instagram-worthy pop-up bagel walls at the Los Angeles and Philadelphia celebrations.
In 2019, Thomas’ worked alongside Chase’s Calendar of Events, the nation’s most comprehensive and authoritative reference on special events, to declare January 15 as the new National Bagel Day – finally “toasting” up a solo celebration after years of the bagel sharing the spotlight with National Pizza Day. To “hole”-heartedly thank fans for their devotion to Thomas’, the brand will be hiding a coveted orange ticket in one free bagel in every city, redeemable for a smart watch. To make the search even more exciting, in one randomly selected city, a golden ticket will hold a grand prize that will have one lucky fan savoring delicious moments all year long thanks to a $2,500 grocery shopping spree.
“Bagels are a delicious and treasured member of the Thomas’ family so we couldn’t think of a better way to kick off our year-long, 140th anniversary than with a nationwide celebration of National Bagel Day,” said Eduardo Zarate, Senior Director of Marketing for Thomas’. “Fans loved our pop-up celebration in Philadelphia last year, so we’re excited to bring together bagel fans from all across the country in 2020 as we ‘toast’ to this iconic classic on January 15th!”
To really keep things “toasty” for everyone this winter season, Thomas’ has also partnered with Operation Warm to make a $100,000 donation of 7,500 coats nationwide. Special celebrations will be hosted by the brand on and around National Bagel Day for students at schools in each of the five celebration cities as each school receives 500 brand new coats to stay warm this winter.
To celebrate alongside Thomas’ on National Bagel Day, fans can look for uniformed street teams in the following locations:
- Chicago – Union Station, 225 S Canal St, Chicago, IL 60606
- Denver – Larimer Square, 1430 Larimer St, Denver, CO 80202
- Los Angeles – Union Station, 800 N Alameda St, Los Angeles, CA 90012
- Philadelphia – 30th Street Station, 2955 Market St, Philadelphia, PA 19104
- Orlando – Lynx Central Station, 455 N Garland Ave, Orlando, FL 32801
Thomas’ dates back to 1880 when Samuel Bath Thomas created his original English Muffin in New York City using a secret process that included griddle baking to create a Nooks and Crannies® English Muffin. The company has since added bagels and breakfast breads, including a line of swirl breads, to its breakfast offerings. Today, Thomas’ sells the #1 English Muffin and #1 grocery bagel in the U.S. For a full list of Thomas’ products and where to buy them, please visit www.ThomasBreads.com.
About Bimbo Bakeries USA
Bimbo Bakeries USA (BBU) is a leader in the baking industry, known for its category leading brands, innovative products, freshness and quality. Our team of 20,000 U.S. associates operates more than 50 manufacturing locations in the United States. Over 11,000 distribution routes deliver our leading brands such as Arnold®, Bimbo®, Boboli®, Brownberry®, Entenmann’s®, Freihofer’s®, Heiner’s™, Marinela®, Mrs Baird’s®, Nature’s Harvest®, Oroweat®, Sara Lee®, Stroehmann®, Thomas’®, and Tia Rosa®. BBU is owned by Mexico’s Grupo Bimbo, S.A.B de C.V., the world’s largest baking company with operations in 22 countries.
About Chase’s Calendar of Events
Since 1957, Chase’s Calendar of Events (published by Rowman & Littlefield) is the most comprehensive and authoritative reference available on special events, holidays, federal and state observances, historic anniversaries and more. Thousands of libraries across the country, broadcast and print media, marketing professionals, social media czars, senior center and activity directors, event planners, publicists, speakers, publishers, travel agents—and simply the curious—trust Chase’s to deliver interesting facts every day of the year.
About Operation Warm
Operation Warm is a national nonprofit that creates brand new, high-quality coats for children in need. Every child, regardless of their economic situation, deserves a brand-new coat. We partner with compassionate individuals and organizations across North America to give a gift of warmth, confidence and hope to millions of children in need. Operation Warm believes a brand-new coat is more than a coat, promoting self-esteem, school attendance and outdoor play.
