Local fast-casual restaurant chain Cava Group Inc. has filed a confidential application with the Securities and Exchange Commission to go public, according to reports.
Washington Business Journal reports that the D.C.-based chain specializing in Mediterranean food has not yet determined the total number of shares that will be offered, as well as the price range of the initial public offering. Cava has filed a draft registration statement with the SEC, making it eligible for a non-public review process. Cava Group and its underwriters will be able to defer disclosure of its filings until it is closer to making its investor roadshow.
The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that Cava Group said it intends to go public in the first half of the year, should the markets remain positive.
According to The MoCo Show, first-generation Greek Americans Ted Xenohristos, Ike Grigoropoulos, and Dimitri Moshovitis opened Cava Mezze in Rockville’s Traville Village Center in 2006, with Moshovitis as executive chef.
In 2008, Xenohristos, Grigoropoulos, and Moshovitis launched a line of dips and spreads that are now available in over 200 stores, including Whole Foods Market. In 2009, Brett Schulman joined the company as CEO and co-founder of the fast-casual chain CAVA — originally called Cava Mezze Grill, it was rebranded to Cava Grill and then rebranded again last year to CAVA.
The Cava Group opened its first restaurant in Bethesda in January 2011; the company opened a location in Downtown Silver Spring in 2016. The chain’s expansion continued with the acquisition of Mediterranean fast-casual competitor Zoe’s Kitchen for approximately $300 Million in 2018.
The company currently has approximately 250 locations in 20 states and the District, according to WBJ.
Photo: CAVA / Facebook