CAVA

What CAVA does

CAVA Group, Inc. is a publicly traded (NYSE: CAVA) Mediterranean fast-casual restaurant chain headquartered in the United States, founded in 2010 by Ike Grigoropoulos, Chef Dimitri Moshovitis, Ted Xenohristos, and CEO Brett Schulman. As of FY2025 the company operates 439 company-owned restaurant locations across 30+ US states, generating $1.169 billion in annual revenue at 22.5% year-over-year growth, with an average unit volume of $2.9 million and restaurant-level profit margins of 24.4%. The core product is a build-your-own Mediterranean dining concept offering customizable bowls, pitas, salads, and sides with proteins such as grilled chicken, salmon, steak, falafel, and lamb.

The company's underlying platform combines a vertically integrated supply chain that centrally manufactures proprietary dips and spreads (including Crazy Feta, tzatziki, hummus, harissa, and signature dressings) with a digital ordering ecosystem spanning a mobile app, the cava.com website, a CAVA Rewards loyalty program with tiered Sea, Sand, Sun status levels, and a DoorDash third-party delivery integration. Digital channels contribute more than 36% of revenue. The company also operates a dedicated catering portal at catering.cava.com, a branded merchandise shop at shop.cava.com, and a gift card program.

CAVA makes money primarily through restaurant sales (dine-in, takeout, and delivery) and secondarily through wholesale distribution of packaged dips and dressings under the CAVA at Home brand at major grocery retailers including Whole Foods Market, Wegmans, H-E-B, Wakefern, and MOM's Organic Market. Pricing is set per menu item at restaurants, gift cards are sold in denominations from $5 to $200, and catering is transacted via a dedicated portal. The company has publicly targeted reaching 1,000 restaurant locations by 2032 and is currently executing a 2026 plan to open more than 75 new restaurants and hire 2,500+ employees.

Name

CAVA

Legal name

CAVA Group, Inc.

Website

https://cava.com

Company type

Public

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

5,001–10,000 employees

Short description

CAVA Group is a publicly traded Mediterranean fast-casual restaurant chain operating 439 company-owned US locations, generating $1.169B in FY2025 revenue through customizable bowls, pitas, and salads, supplemented by grocery dips, catering, loyalty, and digital ordering.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Restaurant Sales: Revenue from company-owned fast-casual Mediterranean restaurant locations including dine-in, takeout, and delivery orders
2. Grocery Retail Products: Sale of packaged dips, spreads, and dressings through major grocery retailers including Whole Foods Market, Wegmans, H-E-B, and regional chains
3. Gift Cards: Sale of physical and eGift cards at restaurants and online
4. Catering Services: Corporate and event catering orders placed through catering.cava.com

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

CAVA operates a fast-casual Mediterranean restaurant chain serving customizable build-your-own bowls, pitas, salads, and sides, complemented by signature dips and dressings produced through a vertically integrated supply chain. Beyond restaurants, CAVA sells branded packaged dips and dressings in grocery retail, offers catering services, runs a tiered loyalty program (CAVA Rewards), and distributes merchandise through an online shop.

Product overview

CAVA is a vertically integrated fast-casual Mediterranean restaurant chain founded in 2010, operating over 400 restaurants across the United States. The core offering is a build-your-own dining experience featuring bowls, pitas, salads, and sides customizable with proteins (grilled chicken, salmon, steak, falafel, lamb), bases (rice, greens, grains), and signature Mediterranean dips (hummus, Crazy Feta, tzatziki, harissa). The product portfolio extends beyond restaurants through CAVA at Home grocery products (dips and dressings available at retailers including Whole Foods Market), the CAVA Rewards loyalty program, CAVA Catering for events, gift cards, a mobile app for ordering, and a merchandise shop. The company also hosts the CAVA Rewards loyalty program with tiered status levels.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• CAVA Restaurants Fast-casual Mediterranean restaurant chain with over 400 locations across the United States, offering a build-your-own concept featuring bowls, pitas, salads, and sides with Mediterranean ingredients for dine-in, takeout, and delivery.
• CAVA Menu (Bowls, Pitas, Sides, Kids Meals, Drinks, Desserts) Build-your-own Mediterranean bowls and pitas featuring proteins (grilled chicken, salmon, steak, falafel, lamb), bases (saffron basmati rice, greens, grains), and signature dips (hummus, Crazy Feta, tzatziki, harissa) and dressings.
• CAVA Catering Catering service for corporate events, meetings, and group gatherings of all sizes, ordered through catering.cava.com.
• CAVA at Home (Grocery Products) CAVA branded dips and dressings sold at grocery retailers nationwide, including Whole Foods Market, Wegmans, H-E-B, Wakefern, MOM's Organic Market, Giant, and Balducci's. Product line includes Traditional Hummus, Tzatziki, Crazy Feta, Harissa, Greek Vinaigrette, Lemon Herb Tahini Dressing, Spicy Lime Tahini Dressing, and Yogurt Dill Dressing.
• CAVA Mobile App Mobile application available on iOS and Android enabling customers to order online, manage their account, and access rewards.
• CAVA Shop (Merchandise) Online merchandise store selling CAVA branded apparel and lifestyle products.

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and regional.

• DoorDashcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDoorDash serves as CAVA's third-party delivery partner. When customers place delivery orders through cava.com, DoorDash handles the fulfillment and delivery of orders. CAVA is not responsible for DoorDash's actions or omissions in delivery service.
• AirbnbminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCAVA partnered with Airbnb for the Mediterranean Summer Suppers experience series, hosting three community dining events in 2026. Events priced at $15 per person and held in Los Angeles, New York City, and a community-voted city.
• Outstanding in the FieldminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration for Mediterranean Summer Suppers events, specifically the Los Angeles event hosted at Wattles Farm featuring local chefs and locally-sourced ingredients.
• Flavors of the GameminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for Mediterranean Summer Suppers events, specifically The Winner's Table at Rockefeller Center in New York City featuring culinary experiences with celebrity chefs and athletes.
• Damascus BakeriescoreOthersDamascus Bakeries is a family-owned business founded in Brooklyn in 1930, now in its third generation. They supply CAVA's perfectly chewy sprouted grain pita using traditional recipes and old-world techniques.
• Whole Foods MarketcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMajor grocery retail partner for CAVA packaged dips and dressings. Products available include Traditional Hummus (8 oz and 16 oz), Tzatziki, Spicy Hummus, Crazy Feta, Harissa, Roasted Red Pepper Hummus, Organic Traditional Hummus, Greek Green Goddess Dip, Spicy Labneh, Lemon Herb Tahini Dressing, Spicy Lime Tahini Dressing, Yogurt Dill Dressing, and Greek Vinaigrette.
• WegmanscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional grocery chain partner offering select CAVA products including Lemon Herb Tahini Dressing, Greek Vinaigrette, Spicy Lime Tahini Dressing, and Yogurt Dill Dressing.
• WakefernregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGrocery cooperative partner offering CAVA products at member stores including Traditional Hummus, Tzatziki, Spicy Hummus, Crazy Feta, Harissa, Greek Green Goddess Dip, and Spicy Labneh.
• MOM's Organic MarketregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional organic grocery chain offering CAVA products including Traditional Hummus, Tzatziki, Spicy Hummus, Crazy Feta, Harissa, Roasted Red Pepper Hummus, Organic Traditional Hummus, Greek Green Goddess Dip, and Spicy Labneh.
• H-E-BregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorTexas-based regional grocery chain offering select CAVA products including Lemon Herb Tahini Dressing, Spicy Lime Tahini Dressing, Yogurt Dill Dressing, Greek Vinaigrette, Traditional Hummus, Tzatziki, and Crazy Feta.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Panera Bread: Established fast-casual chain with soups, salads, sandwiches, and a strong loyalty program (MyPanera). Overlaps with CAVA on customizable healthy meals and digital ordering penetration, but with a broader menu.

Direct peers

• Sweetgreen: Health-focused fast-casual chain selling customizable grain bowls, salads, and warm bowls with strong digital ordering penetration. Direct competitor in the healthy fast-casual category where CAVA competes.
• Shake Shack: Public fast-casual chain with company-owned locations, digital ordering, and a focus on premium ingredients. Comparable in scale, growth trajectory, and public-market investor profile to CAVA.
• Wingstop: Public fast-casual chain with company-owned and franchised locations, high digital ordering mix, and strong unit economics. Comparable in growth profile, restaurant-level margins, and digital-first GTM.
• Chipotle Mexican Grill: The leading US fast-casual chain, operating company-owned restaurants with a customizable menu, mobile ordering, and a loyalty program. Closely comparable to CAVA in business model, unit economics focus, and digital adoption.
• Garbanzo Mediterranean Fresh: Direct Mediterranean fast-casual competitor with build-your-own bowls, pitas, and salads. Closest head-to-head concept competitor in the Mediterranean category.
• Pita Mediterranean Street Food: Mediterranean fast-casual chain focused on customizable pitas, bowls, and salads. Operates in a similar niche and competes for the same health-conscious fast-casual customer.

Emerging players

• DIG: Fast-casual chain focused on seasonal vegetables and bowls with digital ordering. Competes in the same healthy fast-casual category as CAVA, particularly in Northeast markets.
• Just Salad: Fast-growing healthy fast-casual chain with customizable bowls and a sustainability focus. Comparable to CAVA on healthy positioning and digital ordering, though smaller in scale.

Others

• Toufayan Bakeries: Family-owned flatbread and pita manufacturer supplying foodservice and retail. Comparable through its role as a Mediterranean ingredient supplier into the same category CAVA operates in.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/cava
• Facebookfacebook.com/cava
• Instagraminstagram.com/cava
• TikToktiktok.com/@cava?lang=en

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments1 record

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about CAVA