Dive Brief:
- Nathaniel Ru, Sweetgreen’s cofounder and chief brand officer, will retire on Jan. 1, according to a Wednesday press release.
- Zipporah Allen, who has served as chief commercial officer at the chain since September, will assume Ru’s responsibilities.
- Sweetgreen has struggled considerably throughout 2025, as diners have pulled back from spending at fast casual restaurants. The chain’s recent menu plays, designed to win back lapsed customers, added unsustainable operational complexity.
Dive Insight:
Ru, a co-founder of the brand, has been with Sweetgreen for roughly 20 years; he will remain at the chain as a board member.
Allen, his successor in the C-suite role, joined Sweetgreen in September after a stint at Strava, a fitness app. Allen also has significant restaurant experience and was one of the drivers of Taco Bell’s digital transformation in the early part of this decade.
Ru’s exit comes at the end of a hard year for Sweetgreen, which has yet to turn a profit. In Q3, its same-store sales dropped 9.5%, dragged by an 11.7% traffic decline. CEO Jonathan Neman noted that the brand has observed particular pullback from customers aged 25-35, a crucial and overindexed customer base for Sweetgreen. The disappointing quarter — including operating losses of $36.3 million — followed comp sales declines in Q1 and Q2, as well.
Sweetgreen isn’t alone in its struggles, however, as many fast casual rivals have posted rough quarterly performance of late. Recent moves could help Sweetgreen solve its financial challenges, too. In November, Sweetgreen sold Spyce to Wonder for $186 million to “sharpen its focus on growth and profitability.”
A strong marketing campaign around new menu items Sweetgreen plans to launch in 2026, including a handheld product the chain has yet to disclose, could help the company improve its value proposition in the eyes of its core customers. Allen’s time at McDonald’s, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut could prove instrumental as she takes on Ru’s responsibilities.
