sg-20230326

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-Q

(Mark One)


x			QUARTERLY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the quarterly period ended March 26, 2023


o			TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the transition period from______to______

Commission file number 001-41069

SWEETGREEN, INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)


Delaware						27-1159215
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)						(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.)

3102 36th Street Los Angeles, CA						90018
(Address of Principal Executive Offices)						(Zip Code)

(323) 990-7040

Registrant's telephone number, including area code

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:


Title of each class	Trading Symbol(s)	Name of each exchange on which registered
Class A Common Stock	SG	New York Stock Exchange

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant: (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports); and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes x No o

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files). Yes x No o

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.


Large accelerated filer	x	Accelerated filer	o
Non-accelerated filer	o	Smaller reporting company	o
		Emerging growth company	o

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If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. o

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act). Yes o No x

The registrant had 98,171,581 shares of Class A common stock and 13,280,558 shares of Class B common stock as of May 2, 2023.

TABLE OF CONTENTS


		Page
Part I Financial Information
Item 1.	Financial Statements	1
	Condensed Consolidated Statements of Balance Sheets	1
	Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations	2
	Condensed Consolidated Statement of Stockholders’ (Deficit) Equity	3
	Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows	5
	Notes to the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements	6
Item 2.	Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations	23
Item 3.	Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market	38
Item 4.	Controls and Procedures	38

Part II Other Information
Item 1.	Legal Proceedings	39
Item 1A.	Risk Factors	39
Item 2.	Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds	39
Item 3.	Defaults Upon Senior Securities	39
Item 4.	Mine Safety Disclosures	39
Item 5.	Other Information	39
Item 6.	Exhibits	39
Signatures		41

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SPECIAL NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q (“Quarterly Report”) contains forward-looking statements about us and our industry that involve substantial risks and uncertainties. All statements other than statements of historical facts contained in this Quarterly Report, including statements regarding our future results of operations or financial condition, business strategy, and plans and objectives of management for future operations, are forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements because they contain words or phrases such as “anticipate,” “are confident that,” “believe,” “contemplate,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “should,” “target,” “will,” or “would” or the negative of these words or other similar terms or expressions. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements concerning the following:

•our expectations regarding our revenue, restaurant operating costs, operating expenses, and other results of operations, as well as our key performance metrics;

•our expectations regarding our sales channel mix and impact on our margins and business;

•our expectations regarding the effects of inflation, increased interest rates, and an economic downturn, on our business, including on labor rates and supply chain costs, as well as any future pricing actions taken in an effort to mitigate the effects of inflation;

•our expectations regarding the COVID-19 pandemic and the impact on our business and results of operations;

•our expectations about customer behavior trends, including during and following the COVID-19 pandemic and as a result of inflation;

•our expectations regarding our customers’ willingness to pay our prices for higher quality food;

•our growth strategy and business aspirations;

•our focus on opening additional restaurants, diversifying and expanding our menu, making investments in our Owned Digital Channels to attract new customers and increasing order frequency from our existing customers;

•our expectations regarding the impact of automation on our operating model;

•our bold vision to be as ubiquitous as traditional fast food, but with the transparency and quality that consumers increasingly expect;

•our commitment to becoming carbon neutral by the end of 2027;

•industry and market trends and our anticipated market opportunity;

•the costs and success of our sales and marketing efforts and our ability to promote our brand;

•potential future investments in our business, our anticipated capital expenditures, and our estimates regarding our capital requirements;

•our ability to achieve or maintain profitability;

•the impact of pending or future litigation; and

•our ability to effectively manage and scale our supply chain.

You should not rely on forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. We have based the forward-looking statements contained in this Quarterly Report primarily on our current expectations and projections about future events and trends that we believe may affect our business, financial condition and operating results. The outcome of the events described in these forward-looking statements is subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors described in the section titled “Risk Factors” included under Part I, Item 1A in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 25, 2022, and elsewhere in this Quarterly Report. Moreover, we operate in a very competitive and rapidly changing environment.

New risks and uncertainties emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for us to predict all risks and uncertainties that could have an impact on the forward-looking statements contained in this Quarterly Report. The results, events and circumstances reflected in the forward-looking statements may not be achieved or occur, and actual results, events or circumstances could differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements.

In addition, statements that contain “we believe” and similar statements reflect our beliefs and opinions on the relevant subject. These statements are based on information available to us as of the date of this Quarterly Report. While we believe that information provides a reasonable basis for these statements, that information may be limited or incomplete. Our statements should not be read to indicate that we have conducted an exhaustive inquiry into, or review of, all relevant information. These statements are inherently uncertain, and investors are cautioned not to unduly rely on these statements.

The forward-looking statements made in this Quarterly Report relate only to events as of the date on which the statements are made. We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statements made in this

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Quarterly Report to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this Quarterly Report or to reflect new information or the occurrence of unanticipated events, except as required by law. We may not actually achieve the plans, intentions or expectations disclosed in our forward-looking statements, and you should not place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements. Our forward-looking statements do not reflect the potential impact of any future acquisitions, mergers, dispositions, joint ventures, or investments.

GLOSSARY

General

Comparable Restaurant Base. Comparable Restaurant Base for any measurement period is defined as all restaurants that have operated for at least twelve full months as of the end of such measurement period, other than any restaurants that had a material, temporary closure during the relevant measurement period. A restaurant is considered to have had a material, temporary closure if it had no operations for a consecutive period of at least 30 days. For the thirteen weeks ended March 26, 2023, two restaurants were excluded from the Comparable Restaurant Base. For the thirteen weeks ended March 27, 2022 no restaurants were excluded from the Comparable Restaurant Base.

Channels

We have five main sales channels: In-Store, Marketplace, Native Delivery, Outpost and Catering, and Pick-Up. We own and operate all of these channels other than our Marketplace Channel, which is operated by various third-party delivery marketplaces.

In-Store Channel. In-Store Channel refers to sales to customers who make in-store purchases in our restaurants, whether they pay by cash, credit card, or digital scan-to-pay. Purchases made in our In-Store Channel via cash or credit card are referred to as “Non-Digital” transactions, and purchases made in our In-Store Channel via digital scan-to-pay are included as part of our Owned Digital Channels.

Marketplace Channel. Marketplace Channel refers to sales to customers for delivery or pick-up made through third-party delivery marketplaces, including DoorDash, Grubhub, Uber Eats, ezCater, Sharebite and others.

Native Delivery Channel. Native Delivery Channel refers to sales to customers for delivery made through the sweetgreen website or mobile app.

Outpost and Catering Channel. Outpost and Catering Channel refers to sales to customers for delivery made through the sweetgreen website or mobile app to our Outposts, which are our trademark offsite drop-off points at offices, residential buildings, and hospitals. In addition, our Outpost and Catering Channel includes our catering offerings, which refer to sales to customers made through our catering website for pickup at one of our restaurants or delivery to a customer specified address.

Pick-Up Channel. Pick-Up Channel refers to sales to customers made for pick up at one of our restaurants through the sweetgreen website or mobile app.

Owned Digital Channels. Owned Digital Channels encompasses our Pick-Up Channel, Native Delivery Channel, Outpost and Catering Channel, and purchases made in our In-Store Channel via digital scan-to-pay.

Total Digital Channels. Total Digital Channels consist of our Owned Digital Channels and our Marketplace Channel, and include our revenues from all of our channels except those from Non-Digital transactions made through our In-Store Channel.

Key Performance Metrics and Non-GAAP Financial Measures

For definitions of our key performance metrics, Net New Restaurant Openings, Average Unit Volume (“AUV”), Same-Store Sales Change, Total Digital Revenue Percentage, and Owned Digital Revenue Percentage, see the section titled “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Key Performance Metrics.” For definitions of our Non-GAAP Financial Measures, Restaurant-Level Profit, Restaurant-Level Profit Margin, Adjusted EBITDA, and Adjusted EBITDA Margin, see the section titled

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“Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Non-GAAP Financial Measures.”

Restaurant-Level Profit, Restaurant-Level Profit Margin, Adjusted EBITDA, and Adjusted EBITDA Margin are financial measures that are not calculated in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”). See the section titled “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Non-GAAP Financial Measures” for more information, including the limitations of such measures, and a reconciliation of each of these measures to the most directly comparable financial measures stated in accordance with GAAP.

iii

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PART I FINANCIAL INFORMATION

ITEM 1. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

SWEETGREEN, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

(UNAUDITED)

(in thousands, except share and per share amounts)


	As of March 26, 2023		As of December 25, 2022
ASSETS
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$	296,828	$	331,614
Accounts receivable	5,064		3,244
Inventory	1,284		1,383
Prepaid expenses	7,537		8,161

Current portion of lease acquisition costs	93		93
Other current assets	8,042		1,654
Total current assets	318,848		346,149
Operating lease assets	$	257,130	$	254,059
Property and equipment, net	246,929		235,257
Goodwill	35,970		35,970
Intangible assets, net	30,082		30,562
Lease acquisition costs, net	495		518
Security deposits	1,522		1,528
Other assets	4,705		4,767
Restricted cash	125		125
Total assets	$	895,806	$	908,935
LIABILITIES, AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY
Current liabilities:
Current portion of operating lease liabilities	$	28,814	$	29,642
Accounts payable	13,124		12,242
Accrued expenses	20,731		22,069
Accrued payroll	8,757		6,580
Gift cards and loyalty liability	1,836		2,016


Total current liabilities	73,262		72,549
Operating lease liabilities, net of current portion	$	274,607	$	271,097


Contingent consideration liability	22,348		21,296
Other non-current liabilities	1,299		1,353
Deferred income tax liabilities	1,733		1,414

Total liabilities	$

SEC Form 10-Q filed by Sweetgreen Inc.