Can a protein-obsessed tech geek save Sweetgreen from disaster?

This chain restaurant is losing its original fan base. In response, CEO and founder Jonathan Neman is eager to capture the health-conscious crowd in Silicon Valley.

Author: Jemima McVoy

To seek a new opportunity, Sweetgreen co-founder and CEO Jonathan Neman has recently shifted his focus elsewhere, no longer relying solely on chopped romaine lettuce and maple roasted pumpkin — these dishes initially helped the company gain a loyal customer base in the white-collar lunch markets of Washington, New York, and Los Angeles.

The high-income young people who used to frequent Sweetgreen are coming less and less. So Neman is turning his attention to another group of customers: health-obsessed, protein-focused tech workers who meticulously track their intake of the three major nutrients, just like monitoring their sleep. They really like several new items on Sweetgreen’s menu, such as the Hot Honey Chicken Plate (49g protein), Chicken Salad Bacon Club Wrap (42g protein), and Honey Crispy Steak Bowl (33g protein).

“We have a very loyal customer base that’s more focused on longevity and biohacking,” Neman said.

Of course, the most significant new product is Sweetgreen’s latest flagship: Superpower Max Protein Bowl — four servings of roasted chicken, double quinoa and broccoli, with a total protein content of 106 grams.

On launch day, Jacob Bossier, a contractor for Google AI, saw its picture on Twitter and immediately placed an order. “I really want to try it,” Bossier said, adding that he always “focuses on the protein-to-calorie ratio.”

While Bossier was enjoying his meal, Neman was promoting the product on the tech news interview show TBPN, also discussing the dangers of seed oils — a popular topic among Silicon Valley health enthusiasts.

“Many people think Sweetgreen is just a salad or vegetarian restaurant,” he told me, “but we want to emphasize that you can also get high-protein meals here.”

For Sweetgreen, this strategy is very different from its early days of only offering lentil chickpea soup and spicy Sabuz salads.

But the 19-year-old company is now desperately lacking foot traffic: as a key indicator of chain restaurant performance, its same-store sales fell 7.9% last year, while net revenue remained flat.

To win over Silicon Valley, Neman is betting on capturing the young people who dominate online brand discourse and build cultural influence with their keyboards. This also marks a major shift in public perception of the tech crowd: from a group of unremarkable nerds to true trendsetters. The change among this group is quite astonishing: just ten years ago, Silicon Valley’s obsession with diet was mostly limited to meal replacement drinks like Soylent.

Few other restaurant CEOs are as straightforward as Neman in courting protein-seeking tech guys. But Sweetgreen isn’t the only restaurant increasing its focus on healthy and high-protein foods — especially after the widespread adoption of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs, which carry the risk of muscle loss and further boost demand for high-protein options.

Neman faces fierce competition: in December last year, Chipotle launched a dedicated high-protein menu, and even Buffalo Wild Wings introduced an Italian espresso cocktail with 10 grams of protein.

Neman’s relative, Sequoia Capital partner Shawn Maugiel, firmly believes Sweetgreen is on the right track.

“Before health and performance discussions became mainstream, they were already thinking about how food relates to health and well-being, which is very innovative,” Maugiel said.

In addition to launching high-protein menus, Sweetgreen is also enhancing its tech scene appeal through other means. Seven months ago, the company hired Zibola Allen, a former executive at fitness tracking app Strava, as Chief Business Officer.

“Cultural trends always arrive,” Allen said, “and we have to be part of them.”

Previously, menus only listed total calories; now, each dish displays the full content of the three major nutrients, similar to diet tracking apps. In January this year, Sweetgreen announced a partnership with longevity tech startup Function Health, which offers subscription-based blood testing to monitor metabolic health, iron levels, and more. Function helped design several dishes focused on key nutrients, such as Omega Salad (miso salmon with avocado) and Iron-Boost Energy Bowl (steak + almonds).

Neman is also advising Function and its competitor Superpower. He views these new menu items and efforts to attract health-conscious tech and biohacking crowds as steps toward realizing his long-term vision for the company.

Neman dreams of turning Sweetgreen’s app into a highly personalized platform, likening it to a “Spotify for the culinary world.”

Ultimately, he hopes the app will recommend customized meals based on users’ tastes, allergies, and health data from devices like Apple Watch and Whoop bands — just like Spotify creates personalized playlists.

However, some of Sweetgreen’s past tech initiatives have not gone smoothly. In 2021, the company acquired kitchen automation startup Spyce, aiming to reduce labor costs and increase profits through technology. But the installation and operation costs of this system were very high. In December last year, Sweetgreen announced it sold Spyce to Wonder, founded by Marc Lore, for $186 million.

Some industry observers question whether Neman’s obsession with technology and focus on biohackers might be distracting from other core issues facing the brand.

JPMorgan analyst Rahul Krotapalli noted that since its founding in 2007, Sweetgreen has struggled to break into the high-income niche, mainly due to pricing and location issues. Most of its 281 stores are concentrated in affluent areas like New York and Los Angeles. Biohackers and health enthusiasts are just two more small, high-spending groups.

“Our vision for Sweetgreen is not just to be a niche brand — serving only wealthy biohackers,” Neman said. “Although they are definitely a high-quality customer group.”

But even among loyal fans like Los Angeles angel investor Ben Pradayan, there are limits. Pradayan orders from Sweetgreen at least once a week but sometimes questions whether it’s worth the money.

“You look at it and think: ‘I spent $20 on a salad — maybe I could just make it at home,’” he said.

Meanwhile, the Sweetgreen team continues to track health trends, searching for the next wave that could sweep through the tech world and the public. Allen already has a prediction.

“The next big thing,” she said, “will be dietary fiber.”