Sweetgreen Is Cutting Staff — and a 'Loved' Menu Item. Here's How the Salad Chain Plans to Turn Things Around After Posting Disappointing Earnings. Sweetgreen's CEO announced that big changes are coming to the salad chain on an earnings call this week.
By Sherin Shibu Edited by Melissa Malamut
Key Takeaways
- Sweetgreen is laying off 10% of its California-based support team.
- The chain is also discontinuing ripple fries, its healthier alternative to French fries, next week.
- Sweetgreen reported earnings this week for its second quarter and posted a net loss of $23.2 million.
Sweetgreen, the popular eatery known for its $16 salads, is streamlining its staff and its menu after reporting disappointing earnings this week.
According to Restaurant Business, Sweetgreen has made job cuts equating to 10% of open and existing positions on its California-based support team. Sweetgreen employed over 6,400 workers as of the end of last year.
Meanwhile, the chain will also discontinue its $4.95 Ripple Fries, marketed as a healthier alternative to French fries, a mere five months after introducing the option.
Sweetgreen CEO Jonathan Neman said on a Thursday earnings call with analysts that while consumers "loved" the air-fried ripple fries and had a "great reaction" to the product, it was a "distraction" to employees and added extra cooking complexity to their day.
Sweetgreen has already tested removing the fries from its menu in certain stores, and seen "huge improvements in customer satisfaction" as employees focus on the salad chain's core products, Neman said on the call. Sweetgreen will discontinue the item next week, he added.
Sweetgreen made these changes to its staff and menu after posting disappointing quarterly earnings. On Thursday, Sweetgreen announced its second-quarter results, noting that same-store sales fell by 7.6%. The chain reported a net loss of $23.2 million, up from $14.5 million in the same period last year. Total revenue increased by just 0.5% year-over-year to $185.6 million.
What is Sweetgreen's turnaround plan?
Though Sweetgreen may have reported poor financial results this week, the salad chain has a turnaround plan in place that includes offering larger sizes of proteins, improving the taste of its chicken and salmon, and offering discounts on salads ($13 instead of $15) for members.
Mitch Reback, Sweetgreen's chief financial officer, said on the earnings call that the company was also bringing back seasonal options and chef collaborations, as well as presenting new offerings at "more moderate price points."
"While we're not yet where we want to be, we're confident that these actions position Sweetgreen to emerge stronger, more focused, and better aligned with what our guests and investors expect from us," Reback said on the call.
Related: These College Friends Wanted to Sell Better Food. Now, Their Company Is Publicly Traded.
According to Reback, the changes have already taken effect and have helped sales in the current quarter.
Sweetgreen's stock was down over 70% year-to-date at the time of writing. The company's market value was a little over $1 billion.
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