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.
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Sweetgreen CEO Jonathan Neman said on a Thursday earnings call with analysts that while consumers âlovedâ the air-fried ripple fries and had a âgreat reactionâ to the product, it was a âdistractionâ 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 âhuge improvements in customer satisfactionâ as employees focus on the salad chainâs 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 Sweetgreenâs 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, Sweetgreenâs 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 âmore moderate price points.â
âWhile weâre not yet where we want to be, weâre confident that these actions position Sweetgreen to emerge stronger, more focused, and better aligned with what our guests and investors expect from us,â 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.
Sweetgreenâs stock was down over 70% year-to-date at the time of writing. The companyâs market value was a little over $1 billion.
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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.
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