Cava's sales soar after growing in middle-class suburban areas
Cava is bucking the trend by continuing to attract customers as other food chains struggle. The Mediterranean fast casual restaurant has seen footfall soar thanks in part to its decision to grow in middle-class suburban areas. Research firm Placer.ai predicted Cava will have a more successful first quarter of 2025 compared to other restaurant chains.
So far this year, all major chains, including McDonald's, Burger King and Pizza Hut have seen sales drop. Even Cava rival Sweetgreen has struggled. Cava's customer numbers increased by nearly 20 percent in the first three months of this year, while rival chains overall saw visits fall 0.1 percent, Restaurant Business reported.
Analysts say the key is Cava's push into America's middle-class suburbs, where it's found new fans without alienating its core base. 'Between 2022 and 2025, Cava steadily broadened its reach among working and middle-class "blue collar suburbs" and "suburban boomers" consumer segments,' the report said. It comes as Cava, known as the Mediterranean Chipotle, confirmed it would open between 62 and 66 new US locations.
The chain finished 2024 with $954.3 million in revenue, representing a 35.1 percent increase compared to 2023. The chain is expecting to keep growing, and has projected its same-store sales will grow between 6 and 8 percent this year. If results go according to plan, Cava will finish its first quarter of 2025 with $1.19 billion in revenue.
Placer.ai revealed that Cava's competitor Sweetgreen is also showing promise by drawing 'suburban style' visitors. Sweetgreen's customer numbers increased by more than 11 percent in the first quarter of this year, despite a 3.1 percent decline in same-store sales. But other restaurant chains weren't so lucky. Wingstop took a massive hit due to factors such as growing inflation and the LA wildfires .
Chipotle also reported a downturn in revenue last month for the first time in five years. The Mexican-inspired fast food chain had been on a sales tear since 2020, steadily increasing its profits. But in April the company reported that sales fell a surprising 0.4 percent in the first quarter of 2025 when investors were expecting around 1.4 percent growth. Chipotle reported 5.4 percent growth in the previous quarter.
'The first quarter wasn't a good one for Chipotle with sales coming in below expectations and same-restaurant sales falling for the first time in many years,' Neil Saunders, a retail expert at GlobalData, told DailyMail.com. But these numbers are nothing compared to the decline in sit-down restaurants like Hooters and TGI Fridays, both of which have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and are in the process of closing restaurants . Cava is scheduled to release its first quarter earnings report later today.
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