After learning about Panera, I wanted to learn more about some of its fellow fast casual competitors - the leaders that impact directly and indirectly what many of us eat every day.
I listened to the founders of Chipotle, Cava, and Sweetgreen tell their stories on “How I Built This”. The top takeaways:
- Start Small
- First store for Chipotle was only 800 sq feet
- First store for Sweetgreen was only 500 sq ft (this was too small and they had to rent adjacent parking spaces for more storage) and they were a DC-only brand for over 5 years which helped them tinker with and prove out the model
- First store for Cava spent just $15k on an old space
2. Find Your Niche
- Healthy Mediterranean: Cava dropped things early on that sold well but weren’t Mediterranean like pimento cheese and chicken salad
- Organic Local Salads/Bowls: Sweetgreen dropped soft serve to focus on a healthy brand. Focused on marketing to running clubs and fitness space given the connection between healthy salads and working out.
- Chipotle nailed this from the start, and then benefited from post-workout desires for protein (beans and meat).
