Saladworks debuts new look targeting millennials
Can a paint job encourage you to dine in or do takeout? Saladworks believes so, and that's why the company is replacing bright, primary bold colors with earth tones for a warmer, more inviting feel at its stores, said CEO Paul Steck.
Can a paint job encourage you to dine in or do takeout?
Saladworks believes so, and that's why the company is replacing bright, primary bold colors with earth tones for a warmer, more inviting feel at its stores, said CEO Paul Steck.
The move also reflects how far the 30-year-old company built on salads has come from its humble start in Cherry Hill in 1986, to a chain of more than 100 stores in 15 states (mostly Mid-Atlantic) and four countries. Sales were $82 million last year, up from $80 million in 2014.
The privately held company launched a new "open air" design last week at its Newtown, Bucks County, location which includes wooden trellises to diffuse light in a natural way, brown concrete flooring, brick, and a WiFi bar to attract, who else, millennials - the most coveted generation among retailers.
Steck said 60 percent of customers use takeout while just 40 percent eat in, and the company conducted marketing surveys to find out why.
"Our [old] store design . . . felt cold to me, almost sterile," Steck said. "Our product comes from the earth - it's organic and natural - and there wasn't a connection with the store design and our product."
Steck said existing Saladworks don't have to incorporate the new design, because franchisees own all stores, but all 11 new stores planned for this year will have it.
Of 104 stores, 68 are in outdoor strip centers, such as Village at Newtown, or are free-standing structures; 16 are in enclosed malls, such as Cherry Hill Mall. The company's top store for sales is at the food court at Christiana Mall, in Newark, Del.
"The old store design and equipment, candidly, cost too much" at $625,000 per store, Steck said. "I set a goal of $499,000, and got [the price] down to $494,000 per store."
The company is emerging from a difficult year. Saladworks declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February 2015 after a bitter power struggle among its owners. The company was bought by New York private equity firm Centre Lane Partners, in June 2015, for $16.9 million.
"The removal of dysfunctional litigious ownership" has enabled the latest reinvention, Steck said.
Fast-forward to February 2016. Steck said he took iPhone shots of about 70 restaurants he visited all over the country as research for the redesign.
He then hired Odom Architects P.C., out of Mobile, Ala., because the firm had worked on two Southern-based restaurant chains - McAlister's Deli and Zoes Kitchen - with similar issues.
"Their cost went down, but their sales went up" after a redesign, Steck said. "So we hired the architect and had a blank sheet to draw over."
The prototype was completed in December. Principal architect and owner Angela Odom said she studied customer surveys and pored over farm images to capture the farm-to-table look and feel.
Odom chose a wood fence (topped with 3Form laminated panel), wood ladders, and a wood trellis in separating dining spaces, and installed wood crate art. In contrast, the aluminum-rimmed counter at the WiFi bar and aluminum tables and chairs created a balance between traditional and high-tech. Earthy green and orange colors dominate.
Nailing the ambience was critical because "the competition is fierce," Steck said. There are salad bars and packaged, ready-to-go salads at most supermarkets.
"The big news in the restaurant business today is the salad sector is really hot," Steck said. "Companies are being bought up and private-equity money is flying in. Five or six years ago, there was no competition.
"Now, even with the core market in Philadelphia, there are a handful of companies popping up." He cited Sweetgreen, Honeygrow, and Wegmans as competitors here.
"People are living a healthier lifestyle," Steck said. "We figured out that the choices we make about food, and the amount of exercise on our bodies, has an effect on us."
Steck said he's hoping for a 15 percent lift in sales with the redesign, driven largely by millennials, age 19 to 34.
"There were not enough power plugs" in the stores, Steck said of putting a WiFi station in each. "This is what the new generation is attracted to," said district manager and franchisee Nish Patel, 26, who oversaw the redesign of the Newtown store.
Tashayna Grant, 21, of Manayunk, is a coveted customer du jour.
"I recently stopped eating meat, and there's not too many options for good salads," she said, while having one at the Saladworks at 1500 Spring Garden St. last week. The store sits next to Community College of Philadelphia, where Grant is a student.
Signature salads all contain 500 or fewer calories. They start at $8.49 for a turkey club or Greek salad, and up to $8.99 for a farmhouse or Tivoli salad. You can also create your own salad, starting at $8.75.
Steck said Saladworks uses 50-plus ingredients and 17 salad dressings. "It was pretty boring 20 years ago - no frills," he said. "Not anymore. . . . You can add stuff to take it to the next level."
For example, a 270-calorie farmhouse salad comes with roasted butternut squash, baby kale, glazed pecans, goat cheese, apple cider vinaigrette, and roasted brussels sprouts.
"No one wanted brussels sprouts five years ago," Steck said. "Now, we cut them up and roast them in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes, and they're fabulous."
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@SuzParmley