Cava (restaurant)

Short description: Greek-American restaurant chain

Cava

Type| Subsidiary
Industry| Restaurants
Genre| Fast Casual
Founded| 2011; 12 years ago (2011) (as Cava Mezze)
Rockville, Maryland, U.S.
Founders|

* Ted Xenohristos
* Ike Grigoropoulos
* Dimitri Moshovitis
* Brett Schulman

Headquarters|

Washington, D.C.

U.S.

Number of locations

| 253[1]

Area served

| United States

Key people

| Brett Schulman (CEO)[2]
Products| Sandwiches
Pitas
Salads
Other food products
Revenue|  US$541 million (2021)

Number of employees

| 8,000 (2021)[1]
Parent| Cava Group, Inc.
Website| cava.com

Cava (stylized as CAVA) and also referred to as Cava Grill, is Mediterranean fast casual restaurant chain with locations across the United States. Cava is owned by the publicly traded Cava Group, which also owns Zoës Kitchen.[3][4] The combined company is the largest restaurant operator in the Mediterranean category in the U.S. restaurant industry.[5] Cava also produces a line of Mediterranean dips, spreads, and dressings that are sold in grocery stores across the US.[3][6]

## Contents

* 1 History
* 2 Restaurants and expansion
* 3 Cava Group
* 3.1 History
* 4 References

## History

In 2006, first-generation Greek Americans Ted Xenohristos, Ike Grigoropoulos, and Dimitri Moshovitis launched the full-service Cava Mezze restaurant in Rockville, Maryland, with Moshovitis as executive chef.[3][6][7] In 2008, Xenohristos, Grigoropoulos, and Moshovitis partnered with Geoff Maites and Kenny Maites to launch a line of dips and spreads, and grew the product line into over 200 stores, including Whole Foods Market.[8][9][10] In 2009, Brett Schulman joined them as CEO and co-founder of the fast-casual chain Cava (originally called Cava Mezze Grill, later rebranded as Cava Grill and then simply as Cava).[7][9][11] They opened the first Cava restaurant in Bethesda, Maryland, in January 2011.[9][12]

In April 2021, Cava Group completed a $190 million series F funding round led by T. Rowe Price, bringing its value to nearly $1.3 billion.[13] Since 2015, the company has raised more than $640 million.[14]

Cava was named one of the world's 50 most innovative companies by Fast Company in 2018.[15] Fishbowl Analytics named Cava Grill its top emerging restaurant brand in 2019.[16] Since 2018, Cava has been offering its employees paid time off to vote.[17] In the 2020 presidential election, Cava offered free meals to poll workers in all of its locations.[18] During the COVID-19 pandemic, Cava launched a program called Feeding Families where, for every family meal sold, they donated another to the family of a first responder.[19] Cava has since removed the family meal option from their menu.

On June 15, 2023, Cava made its public debut on the NYSE under the symbol CAVA.[20]

## Restaurants and expansion

Cava restaurant in Silver Spring, Maryland

In November 2018, Cava Group bought Zoës Kitchen, a restaurant chain with more than 250 locations, in a deal worth $300 million, taking the company private and helping Cava expand further into the suburbs.[6][21][22]

As of August 2021, there are 133 Cava locations. Each one of Cava's restaurants is company-owned, and none are franchised.[6] In 2020, Cava Group converted seven of its Zoës Kitchen locations to Cava-branded restaurants and plans to convert 50 more in 2021.[13][14][22] Cava has also invested in new technologies to expand its tech platform.[14] It has additional off-premises and digital kitchens dedicated to preparing food for online orders.[22] Cava added curbside pickup to its locations, added delivery through its mobile app and website, and delivery through DoorDash and Uber Eats.[13][23]

In November 2021, Cava closed its outpost in Barracks Row in Washington, DC., which was the second location it had opened in 2009, to "concentrate on our new concepts and other locations."[24]

## Cava Group

Cava Group, Inc.Type| Public

|

Traded as

| NYSE: CAVA
Industry| Restaurants
Founded| 2014; 9 years ago (2014)
Founder| Brett Schulman
Headquarters| Washington, D.C., U.S.

Number of locations

| 391 (January 2022)

Key people

| Brett Schulman (CEO)
Revenue|  US$881 million (2021)

Number of employees

| 12,200 (2019)
Subsidiaries|

* Cava
* Zoës Kitchen

Website| Cava Group

### History

Cava Group, Inc., the parent of Cava and Zoës Kitchen, was formed by Brett Schulman in 2011. Cava Group was named one of the world's 50 most innovative companies by Fast Company in 2018.[15] Fishbowl Analytics named Cava Grill its top emerging restaurant brand in 2019.[16] Since 2018, Cava has been offering its employees paid time off to vote.[17] In the 2020 presidential election, Cava offered free meals to poll workers in all of its locations.[18] During the COVID-19 pandemic, Cava launched a program called Feeding Families where, for every family meal sold, they donated another to the family of a first responder.[19]

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Locations". https://cava.com/locations.
2. ↑ "Behind Cava Group’s conversion of Zoe’s Kitchen restaurants". January 11, 2023. https://www.restaurantbusinessonline.com/financing/behind-cava-groups-conversion-zoes-kitchen-restaurants.
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "Bethesda Interview: The Cava Guys". https://bethesdamagazine.com/bethesda-magazine/november-december-2018/bethesda-interview-the-cava-guys/.
4. ↑ "The 13 Most Anticipated Restaurant Openings Around D.C., Summer 2021". https://dc.eater.com/2021/6/25/22523094/d-c-most-anticipated-restaurants-opening-summer-2021.
5. ↑ "CAVA to acquire Zoe's Kitchen for $300 million". Reuters. August 17, 2018. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-zoe-s-kitchen-m-a-cava/cava-to-acquire-zoes-kitchen-for-300-million-idUSKBN1L217V. Retrieved January 7, 2020.
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 "Cava: Healthy Mediterranean Chain Expanding And Acquiring". https://www.forbes.com/sites/garystern/2019/11/15/cava-healthy-mediterranean-chain-expanding-and-acquiring/?sh=208251fa1434.
7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 "People are obsessed with this Mediterranean chain that's taking over America — here are its secrets". Business Insider. March 30, 2017. https://www.businessinsider.com/cava-grill-expansion-2017-3?r=US&IR=T. Retrieved January 7, 2020.
8. ↑ Sidman, Jessica (2013-09-26). "The Shopping Channel: Why Restaurants Are Drawn to the Shiny Lights of Grocery Store Shelves" (in en-US). http://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/353636/the-shopping-channel-why-restaurants-are-drawn-to-the-shiny-lights-of-grocery-store-shelves/.
9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 "Cava to nearly double by next summer". https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/capitalbusiness/cava-to-nearly-double-by-next-summer/2014/08/01/d28a9122-1666-11e4-85b6-c1451e622637_story.html.
10. ↑ "CAVA Expands Dips and Spreads Line to Whole Foods Nationwide". QSR Magazine. March 26, 2019. https://www.qsrmagazine.com/news/cava-expands-dips-and-spreads-line-whole-foods-nationwide. Retrieved January 7, 2020.
11. ↑ "3 tips for switching careers from guy who left finance for food". https://www.cnbc.com/2015/08/21/former-bankers-trust-and-deutsche-bank-trader-eats-up-mediterranean-fast-food-market.html.
12. ↑ "What Inspires Cava CEO Brett Schulman". https://www.qsrmagazine.com/start-finish-what-inspires-execs/what-inspires-cava-ceo-brett-schulman.
13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 "Cava Restaurant Chain Nears $1.3 Billion Value With New Funding". https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-04-27/cava-restaurant-chain-nears-1-3-billion-value-with-new-funding.
14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 "Cava nabs a $190 million investment". https://www.restaurantbusinessonline.com/financing/cava-nabs-190-million-investment.
15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 "Cava". https://www.fastcompany.com/company/cava.
16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 "These 10 restaurants could be the next Sweetgreen". CNBC. March 26, 2019. https://www.cnbc.com/2019/03/26/these-10-restaurants-could-be-the-next-sweetgreen.html. Retrieved January 7, 2020.
17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 "Cava giving employees PTO to vote". https://www.fastcasual.com/news/cava-giving-employees-pto-to-vote/.
18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 "Vote, then treat yourself to these Election Day freebies". https://www.today.com/food/election-day-2020-deals-freebies-you-can-take-advantage-t196212.
19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 "How Austin Restaurants Are Helping Hospital Workers and First Responders". https://austin.eater.com/2020/4/15/21221747/austin-restaurants-help-hospital-health-care-workers-food-discounts-coronavirus.
20. ↑ "Restaurant Chain Cava Soars in Debut After $318 Million IPO" (in en). Bloomberg.com. 2023-06-15. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-06-15/restaurant-chain-cava-soars-in-debut-after-318-million-ipo.
21. ↑ "Cava Group acquires a massive competitor". Washington Business Journal. August 17, 2018. https://www.bizjournals.com/washington/news/2018/08/17/cava-groupacquires-a-massive-competitor.html. Retrieved January 7, 2020.
22. ↑ 22.0 22.1 22.2 "Cava sets its sights on bigger national presence after Zoes Kitchen acquisition". CNBC. April 18, 2019. https://www.cnbc.com/2019/04/17/cava-sets-its-sights-on-bigger-national-presence-after-zoes-kitchen-acquisition.html. Retrieved January 7, 2020.
23. ↑ "What's cooking: An inside look at Cava's new innovation kitchen". QSR Magazine. September 17, 2019. https://www.restaurantdive.com/news/whats-cooking-an-inside-look-at-cavas-new-innovation-kitchen/562815/. Retrieved January 10, 2020.
24. ↑ "Cava Mezze on Barracks Row Closes After 12 Years". Barred In DC. December 1, 2021. https://barredindc.com/2021/12/01/cava-mezze-on-barracks-row-closes-after-12-years/. Retrieved December 2, 2021.

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