Sweetgreen’s Q3 2025 revenue barely moved while its existing restaurants lost sales. Its earnings release reported $172.4 million in revenue, down 0.6%, and a $36.1 million net loss. Same-store sales fell 9.5%.
The split matters more than a stock-price reaction. Traffic and product mix fell 11.7%, partly offset by a 2.2% benefit from menu price increases. New restaurants added revenue that obscured the decline at existing locations. Opening more doors did not make the regular customers come back.
A higher price needs another visit
My concern is the frequency of an ordinary lunch purchase. A customer can like a salad and still stop buying it several times a week. Raising prices helps the receipt only if enough customers keep returning.
Sweetgreen attributed weaker traffic and mix partly to consumer spending and its loyalty-program transition. Those explanations do not establish that every fast-casual chain faced the same decline. Nor do they tell us exactly which price would recover visits.
The restaurant-level profit margin fell from 20.1% to 13.1%. Sweetgreen also cited ingredient, packaging, and advertising costs. That leaves management with an awkward job: improve the value customers feel without giving away the margin the stores need.
Delivery changes the receipt
A delivery order adds another layer of costs and another company seeking a return. DoorDash’s Q3 results showed a growing, profitable platform. They do not reveal what Sweetgreen kept from an individual delivered bowl.
I would compare repeat visits and restaurant contribution across in-store, pickup, and delivery orders. A discount that brings someone back can be useful. A promotion that shifts an existing customer into a more expensive channel can make the headline sales number look better while leaving the store worse off.
The 13.1% restaurant margin leaves less room to discount lunch than the 20.1% margin a year earlier. Sweetgreen needs repeat visits badly enough to spend on them, but each promotion has to leave the restaurant with something to keep.