Chili’s and Sweetgreen have been a study in contrasts recently. | Photo: Shutterstock.
Sweetgreen sorely needs a turnaround.
Sweetgreen’s same-store sales fell nearly 13% in the first quarter. It was the sharpest decline since the chain went public in 2021. And it followed a 7.9% decline for fiscal 2025. Since going public, Sweetgreen has yet to make a profit.
So fans might be happy to hear CEO Jonathan Neman recently reached out to a widely celebrated expert on restaurant brand turnarounds:
Kevin Hochman.
Yes, the CEO of Chili’s recently met with Neman and the Sweetgreen leadership to share a bit about how the 50-year-old casual-dining brand became the second largest in the country, surging past Olive Garden to almost catch up to Texas Roadhouse.
Hochman’s visit to Sweetgreen was first reported by Rick Vanzura, a restaurant industry advisor and former Wahlburgers and Panera exec, who writes the Vanzura’s Table Talk column on LinkedIn.
Separately, Sweetgreen officials confirmed the Hochman meetings, which occurred about two months ago. Sweetgreen didn’t offer details.
From Vanzura, however, we learn that Neman is applying a lot of Hochman’s playbook, in terms of simplifying operations and focusing on the customer. (Neman told Vanzura that other operators have also offered good advice.)
Chili’s has been on a sales growth tear since Hochman took the helm in 2022.
The chain’s U.S. systemwide sales reached $5.52 billion in sales last year with 1,206 units, according to Technomic data. That’s up from $3.73 billion in sales in 2022 — a 47% increase despite the fact that Chili’s had 28 fewer restaurants than in 2022.
Hochman’s turnaround of the legacy Chili’s brand will no doubt be studied for years.
It wasn’t the first time he creatively brought new attention to an old brand. Earlier in his career, he was at Procter and Gamble and was part of the crew that revived Old Spice. After that, he went to KFC U.S., and as president, led the marketing campaign that included a parade of celebrities as the Colonel.
At Chili’s, Hochman focused on the basics first, visiting restaurants and hearing from team members about how the business could be improved. He made investments in the physical buildings, fixing roofs where needed, for example.
He also trimmed and focused the menu, improving core items, like burgers, margaritas and fajitas.
He paid more attention to operations. Then he launched a social media campaign, replete with fried mozzarella cheese pulls as part of the Triple Dipper appetizers, which was a particular hit with younger consumers that suddenly made the brand cool again.
Even the baby back ribs jingle is back.
Sweetgreen, meanwhile, wants to be a lifestyle brand again.
In its early days, the brand was known for music festivals and chef collaborations. The brand was born from a desire by its co-founders to re-invent fast food by building a concept that is healthful with better ingredients.
This year, the chain rolled out new wrap sandwiches, with a price point starting at $10.95 and aggressive marketing. The goal is to attract the no-bowl guest, and it appears to be working.
But Sweetgreen also has a price perception problem. That’s another thing the brand is working on. This year, Sweetgreen is testing changes to its price architecture to add more entry points to the menu, and more transparency for the build-your-bowl option.
Neman believes Sweetgreen needs to improve its storytelling so guests recognize and appreciate the real, unprocessed ingredients on offer. He wants guests to see that Sweetgreen’s food is worth paying a bit more for.
Vanzura, meanwhile, questions Sweetgreen’s guidance of 14.2% to 14.7% for restaurant margins this year.
Neman has said operational tweaks will help reduce costs. Labor can be reduced, and Sweetgreen might look at things like making the base of dressings off site but finishing them in house with fresh herbs, for example. Kale could come in de-stemmed, rather than doing that in house. Sweet potatoes could be pre-cubed. He sees such moves as neutral-to-positive for the guest.
But, while Hochman put restaurant unit growth on hold as the transformation plan was put in place, Neman does not appear to see the need (though Sweetgreen has slowed growth somewhat). Sweetgreen is working on a new prototype, and Neman wants to be ready to push the accelerator on growth when ready.
Fundamentally, Neman doesn’t feel Sweetgreen is given enough credit as a pioneer in the fast-casual space. It was one of the first to use sourceboards for ingredients, for example, and one of the first to execute digital pickup.
“Look at all the copycats now,” Neman told Vanzura. “We have paid a high pioneer tax, but we remain committed to innovation. We just need to tell a better story.”
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