Sweetgreen will begin accepting cash again at all 94 of its nationwide locations by September 30, Bloomberg reports. The popular fast-casual salad chain stopped accepting cash in 2016, a decision that was met with criticism. Critics argue that cashless businesses discriminate against customers who might not have access to lines of credit or mobile payment apps. Boston law prohibits cashless businesses, and so the city’s Sweetgreen locations never stopped accepting cash. Philadelphia, where there are currently six Sweetgreen locations, recently passed a similar law. Sweetgreen co-founder and co-Chief Executive Officer Nicolas Jammet says the chain first went cashless to appeal to younger consumers. “We believed there were many advantages that would benefit the SG community, including employee safety—reducing incidents of robbery—and that it would speed up service in our restaurants,” he said. The salad chain is valued over $1 billion, and expects to grow to more than 100 stores by the end of 2019.
