Fast-casual entree salad franchise Saladworks will further expand its footprint within three Kroger stores in Ohio and one in Kentucky this summer.
These new Ohio units will add on to the two existing Saladworks locations in Columbus and another Kroger store in Cincinnati. Parent company WOWorks notes the plan to grow Saladworks locations in Ohio targets the state’s growing Millennial and Gen Z guest spending power and lifestyle needs.
Saladworks’ focus on menu items that are fresh and do not require cooking, grills, hoods, or skilled kitchen staff has been instrumental in its growth, per a company release. Coupled with Ohio’s inventory of affordable real estate, Saladworks expects strong and accelerated growth in Columbus, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Toledo and Akron.
The move to open restaurants within grocery chains and other nontraditional venues began in early 2019 when Saladworks opened its first in-store location in Philadelphia. Much like the concept’s stand-alone locations across the country, these nontraditional restaurant locations focus on customization through an array of more than 60 fresh ingredients.
The in-store restaurants provide guests a variety of healthy menu items to grab while shopping, including customizable salads, wraps, grain bowls, soups and more. To date, Saladworks has restaurants in 10 grocery stores in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Ohio and New York, with more planned to open in 2021 and 2022.
In total, Saladworks has more than 130 locations across 18 states and two countries.