THE BRAINS BEHIND THE BOWLS

Since their undergraduate days, Sweetgreen’s co-founders have shared the chief executive role—and one giant desk. Ten years later, they’ve divided and conquered nine markets.

NATHANIEL RU

Creative branding and design

STARTUP GENES Ru’s dad emigrated from Taiwan and started an L.A. business importing goods from Asia.

LEADERSHIP LESSON Always hire ahead of the curve. The co-founders waited until they had opened three stores before hiring any corporate staff. “You bootstrap a lot of things yourself in the beginning, but it was just the three of us,” Ru says. “We needed some help.”

NICOLAS JAMMET

Food and beverage operations

STARTUP GENES With parents on New York City’s restaurant scene, Jammet interned for chef Joe Bastianich and restaurateur Danny Meyer.

LEADERSHIP LESSON Sweetgreen’s second store was a ghost town—until the co-founders started blasting music and sampling food outside. “Never waste a crisis,” Jammet says. “Shit is going to happen. Flip it and make a positive out of it.”

JONATHAN NEMAN

Tech, real estate, and finance

STARTUP GENES His parents emigrated from Iran and started an L.A. textile manufacturer. In high school, Neman sold day planners and ran a tutoring business.

LEADERSHIP LESSON When Sweetgreen accepted its first VC funding, it switched from geographic expansion to developing an openkitchen layout and online ordering. “Sometimes you have to slow down to speed up,” Neman says.