Saladworks was started by John Scardapane and Vernon Hill in 1986.  John developed the concept while he was working as a chef at a New Jersey country club.   When the concept was originally presented to the higher-ups at the Cherry Hill Mall in South Jersey, they did not believe that a salad only restaurant could survive.  They had John add sandwiches to his menu, which were quickly dropped when the salad sales out performed every other restaurant in the mall.  By 2002 there were over 20 locations and currently there are over 100 locations combined with both company owned and franchises.

The current Saladworks menu still features salads, but also features fusion sandwiches, Panini’s, soups, and wraps.  They serve a large number of already created salads along with a create your own option.  They also feature 12 healthy wraps, 6 fusion sandwiches, and 4 Panini’s that a customer can choose from.  Saladworks serves a number of different soups that vary from one location to another and from day to day as well.  They also offer a variety of beverages along with dine in and carry out options.

To open a Saladworks restaurant franchise it is necessary for an individual or a group to have a minimum of $135,000 in liquid assets for one location or $270,000 in liquid assets for three locations.  They must also go through a five week training course that will cover all the different aspects of the business.  This includes classroom training sessions along with on location training as well.  The royalty fee is 5% of the gross sales on a monthly basis along with 3% for advertising or 1.5% for food court locations.  It is helpful to have prior food service, retail or business experience, but it is not a requirement to open a Saladworks franchise location.