Staffing
Sweetgreen hires Rossann Williams as COO
February 6, 2024
Los Angeles-based Sweetgreen has appointed former Starbucks executive Rossann Williams as COO to oversee Operations, Real Estate, Development and Supply Chain.
"Rossann is an industry veteran with a proven track record in driving sustainable growth of global, iconic brands and leading teams to generate profitability," Jonathan Neman, CEO and co-founder of Sweetgreen, said in a company press release. Rossann complements the existing skills and experience of our leadership team as we pursue our next chapter of growth. It's clear that she shares our values, and I look forward to partnering with Rossann to further our mission of connecting more communities to real food."
Prior to joining Sweetgreen, Williams spent over 18 years at Starbucks, where she rose to EVP and president of North America Retail. She managed 16,000 stores, improving same-store sales and opening thousands of stores. Williams also served in senior operations roles across North America, eventually rising to SVP, Global and Americas Operations Services. Previously, Williams held leadership roles at Blockbuster and Toys "R" Us.
"I've long admired Sweetgreen's leadership as a founder-led, mission-driven company driving the industry forward," Williams said in the release. "I am deeply aligned with Sweetgreen's values, people-centric approach and commitment to connect more people to delicious, real food. I'm thrilled to be joining the Sweetgreen team at a moment of significant growth and an incredible opportunity ahead."
Since opening its first 560-square-foot location in 2007, Sweetgreen has scaled to over 220 locations.
