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At a time when restaurant chains are discounting meals to boost traffic, the Mediterranean chain Cava is holding fast to its no-discounting strategy.
My colleague Jennifer Williams recently caught up with Cava Chief Financial Officer Tricia Tolivar, who says the company has no plans to discount, even as some U.S. diners pull back on spending.
Consumers, especially younger ones, are spending less on eating out and also shopping less at retailers during this important holiday season, as Williams recently reported. For Cava, appealing to would-be diners who are currently bombarded with discounts could mean joining in on the deals.
Tolivar puts it this way: “There might be a tendency to try to generate short-term improvements in traffic as a result of discounting… We don’t think that has value over the long term.”
The WSJ Leadership Institute’s CFO Journal connected with Williams on her latest findings on Cava’s corporate strategy. Here’s our condensed Q&A with her:
Why is Cava resisting discounts, when so many others are doing so as a way to attract customers?
Williams: It’s not a good long-term strategy for Cava, executives say. It trains their customers to expect deals all of the time, which they don’t want to do. Rather than discounting, executives say the focus is on ensuring consumers know how much food comes in a Cava bowl and the quality of its ingredients. And even without discounts, Cava diners get a deal, executives say.
And in your reporting, what do the experts say in terms of whether this can be a winning strategy?
Williams: It makes sense for Cava in the long-term, analysts say. Consumers are pulling back on eating out, which showed up in Cava’s recent earnings, but they say reactive discounts will have lasting impacts on the perception of the brand. Plus, Cava has worked to keep its prices in check, with only a roughly 1.7% price lift in early 2025 to offset tariffs and inflationary pressures. So the bowls are a pretty good deal, they say. It’s a matter of making sure consumers know this, and about Cava in general.
✏️ Share your thoughts. Do you think resisting discounting can be a winning strategy in this economic environment? Reply at the end of the story or hit Reply to this newsletter to share your views.
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