Velarion · Company Intelligence
Compensation Brief
Fiscal year 2025 · Filings through 2026-07-08

Cava Group (CAVA)

Fiscal year 2025 executive and director compensation, incentive-plan design, equity activity, and governance — every figure in this brief is traceable to its exact location in the company’s SEC filing — the document, the section, the page, and the table, linked directly.

$3,859,478
Brett Schulman total, FY2025
11th
CEO pay percentile vs peers
179:1
CEO-to-median pay ratio
87.77%
Say-on-pay support, latest vote
Companies that benchmark against CAVA
5 companies name CAVA as a compensation peer

Each company listed discloses CAVA in its own benchmarking peer group, as disclosed in each company's most recent proxy statement within the last two proxy seasons. Two companies are therefore absent by design: one that named CAVA in an earlier year and no longer does, and one whose own most recent disclosure is older than the last two seasons.

01

Summary Compensation Table — fiscal year 2025

Named executive officerSalaryBonusStock awardsOption awardsNon-equity incentivePension / NQDCAll otherTotal
Brett Schulman$861,538$0$999,906$1,000,040$982,106$0$15,888$3,859,478
President and Chief Executive Officer
Jennifer Somers391,2310599,924600,00400787,7272,378,886
Former Chief Operations Officer
Tricia Tolivar557,0770674,998675,017381,023016,3822,304,497
Chief Financial Officer
Kelly Costanza450,7690399,981399,986267,204018,5431,536,483
Chief People Officer
Theodoros Xenohristos450,7690399,981399,986267,204013,4161,531,356
Chief Concept Officer
Robert Bertram295,7690324,908324,973139,655017,1721,102,477
Former Chief Legal Officer and Secretary

A dash means the company reported no figure in that column; 0 means it reported zero. Figures are as printed in the filing, without adjustment.

Three-year trend — total compensation per named executive

Named executive officerFY2025 totalFY2024 totalFY2023 totalΔ FY20242025
Brett Schulman$3,859,478$1,924,218$17,060,929+1,935,260
Jennifer Somers2,378,8861,026,2692,407,738+1,352,617
Tricia Tolivar2,304,4971,046,3183,422,951+1,258,179
Kelly Costanza1,536,483787,2862,148,798+749,197
Theodoros Xenohristos1,531,356772,0163,147,850+759,340
Robert Bertram1,102,477

Prior-year totals as disclosed in the corresponding proxy; deltas are computed values with the derivation shown in the register.

02

Equity transactions since the proxy statement was filed

No insider equity transactions reported since the proxy statement.

03

Grants of plan-based awards — fiscal year 2025

ExecutiveAwardGrant dateThresholdTargetGrantedMaximumGrant-date fair value
Robert BertramRSU2025-02-283,419$324,908
Robert BertramOPTION2025-02-286,481324,973
Kelly CostanzaRSU2025-02-284,209399,981
Kelly CostanzaOPTION2025-02-287,977399,986
Brett SchulmanRSU2025-02-2810,522999,906
Brett SchulmanOPTION2025-02-2819,9441,000,040
Jennifer SomersRSU2025-02-286,313599,924
Jennifer SomersOPTION2025-02-2811,966600,004
Tricia TolivarRSU2025-02-287,103674,998
Tricia TolivarOPTION2025-02-2813,462675,017
Theodoros XenohristosRSU2025-02-284,209399,981
Theodoros XenohristosOPTION2025-02-287,977399,986
03b

Vehicle mix — grant-date fair value by award type

Named executive officerTime-vested (RSU)Performance-vested (PSU)Options / SARs% performance-vested
Robert Bertram$324,908$0$324,9730.0%
Kelly Costanza399,9810399,9860.0%
Brett Schulman999,90601,000,0400.0%
Jennifer Somers599,9240600,0040.0%
Tricia Tolivar674,9980675,0170.0%
Theodoros Xenohristos399,9810399,9860.0%

% performance-vested = PSU grant-date fair value ÷ (RSU + PSU + Options), a computed value with the derivation shown in the register.

04

Outstanding equity awards at fiscal year-end 2025

ExecutiveAwardShares unvestedExercise priceMarket value unvested
Tricia TolivarRSU4,815$289,622
Brett SchulmanRSU199,43211,995,835
Brett SchulmanRSU42,9182,581,518
Theodoros XenohristosRSU39,1712,356,136
Tricia TolivarRSU23,0111,384,112
Kelly CostanzaRSU22,5001,353,375
Theodoros XenohristosRSU12,784768,958
Kelly CostanzaRSU12,784768,958
Brett SchulmanRSU12,102727,935
Brett SchulmanRSU10,522632,898
Robert BertramRSU10,227615,154
Tricia TolivarRSU7,103427,245
Tricia TolivarRSU7,059424,599
Kelly CostanzaRSU5,139309,111
Robert BertramRSU4,638278,976
Theodoros XenohristosRSU4,209253,171
Kelly CostanzaRSU4,209253,171
Kelly CostanzaRSU3,507210,946
Theodoros XenohristosRSU3,495210,224
Robert BertramRSU3,419205,653
Robert BertramRSU3,102186,585
Theodoros XenohristosRSU2,385143,458
Brett SchulmanOption32,4546.75
Brett SchulmanOption24,9549.58
Brett SchulmanOption388,27422
Brett SchulmanOption19,94495.03
Tricia TolivarOption10,9236.75
Tricia TolivarOption14,5569.58
Tricia TolivarOption45,24122
Tricia TolivarOption13,46295.03
Theodoros XenohristosOption5,4096.75
Theodoros XenohristosOption7,2099.58
Theodoros XenohristosOption25,13422
Theodoros XenohristosOption7,97795.03
Kelly CostanzaOption7,9536.75
Kelly CostanzaOption10,5969.58
Kelly CostanzaOption25,13422
Kelly CostanzaOption7,97795.03
Robert BertramOption7,0386.75
Robert BertramOption9,5649.58
Robert BertramOption20,10722
Robert BertramOption6,48195.03
05

Incentive-plan design — the Compensation Discussion & Analysis

The principal objective of the executive compensation program is to attract, motivate, and retain key talent to achieve business goals and align executive pay with stockholder interests. The program aims to be market competitive, emphasizing objective financial goals and individual accomplishments, while placing a significant portion of compensation at risk tied to financial performance and stock price appreciation.

CEO STI target (% of salary)
CEO LTI target (% of salary)
Independent consultantPearl Meyer & Partners, LLC
Clawback policytrue
Anti-hedgingtrue
Anti-pledgingtrue
06

Say-on-pay — recent advisory votes

Meeting yearMeeting dateForAgainstAbstainSupportOutcome
20262026-06-2275,849,58710,573,039111,72587.77%Passed
20252025-06-2070,325,8146,444,156156,31991.61%Passed

Rows are labeled by annual-meeting year, with the meeting date beside each; the vote held in a given year acts on the prior fiscal year's compensation.

Say-on-pay — history, company's computation

Meeting yearMeeting dateApproval — company's computation
20262026-06-2287.77%a
20252025-06-2091.61%b

a. Voting standard not stated in the filing.

b. Voting standard not stated in the filing.

Approval percentages are the company's own reported computations under its own stated standard, not recomputed by Velarion. Where a company does not state a standard, none is assumed.

07

CEO pay ratio

Ratio (CEO : median employee)179 : 1
CEO total compensation
Median employee compensation$13,500
08

Director compensation — fiscal year 2025

DirectorCash feesStock awardsOption awardsNon-equity incentiveAll otherTotal
Ronald ShaichNot independent · Board Chair$160,000$131,854$0$0$0$291,854
Lauri ShanahanIndependent · People, Culture and Compensation (Chair) · Nominating, Governance and Sustainability100,000131,854000231,854
James D. WhiteIndependent · Audit · Nominating, Governance and Sustainability (Chair)100,000131,854000231,854
David BossermanIndependent · Audit (Chair)100,000131,854000231,854
Karen KochevarIndependent · Audit · People, Culture and Compensation · Not standing for re-election92,500131,854000224,354
Benjamin FeltIndependent · People, Culture and Compensation82,500131,854000214,354
Philippe AmouyalIndependent · Nominating, Governance and Sustainability80,000131,854000211,854
Brett SchulmanEmployee director0
Theodoros XenohristosEmployee director0
09

Board fee structure and ownership guideline

Annual cash retainer$75,000
Annual equity retainer$150,000
Per board meeting fee
Committee chair fees (audit / comp / nom-gov)25,000 / 20,000 / 15,000
Stock ownership guideline$5
09b

Total cost of the board

ComponentFY2025
Cash retainers and fees$715,000
Equity awards (grant-date value)$922,978
All other compensation$0
Total cost of the board$1,637,978

Computed as the sum of the director compensation table rows above; inputs and formula shown in the register.

10

Disclosed peer group — fiscal year 2025

The compensation peer group as the company disclosed it in its own proxy — the reference set behind the percentile above.

10a

Peer reciprocity

Of the companies Cava Group names as compensation peers, which name it back in their own disclosed peer groups. A peer set the market reciprocates reads differently from one selected in a single direction.

Reciprocity shown where the peer's own current proxy has been read — each mark is cited in the register to that peer's filing. A dash means the peer's current proxy was read and names no reciprocal group including Cava Group.

10b

Chief executive pay against the peer group

Most recent fiscal-year chief executive compensation at each disclosed peer, taken from that company's own proxy statement.

RankCompanyFYChief executiveSalaryStock awardsOption awardsNon-equity incentiveTotal
1Wingstop Inc.2025Michael Skipworth$959,231$32,590,697$0$1,708,800$35,288,595
2Maplebear Inc.2025Chris Rogers742,04628,432,1830267,80429,847,540
3Texas Roadhouse, Inc.2025Gerald Morgan1,356,5388,410,9280909,41310,822,133
4Five Below, Inc.2025Winnie Park1,100,0006,792,21502,750,00010,814,084
5e.l.f. Beauty, Inc.2026Tarang Amin475,0007,399,8670950,0008,834,367
6Planet Fitness, Inc.2025Colleen Keating1,000,0004,999,94901,723,3998,237,348
7YETI Holdings, Inc.2025Matthew Reintjes1,057,3085,500,18701,126,0337,697,528
8Shake Shack Inc.2025Robert Lynch1,000,0005,000,16101,011,7507,210,818
9Cava Group2025Brett Schulman861,538999,9061,000,040982,1063,859,478
10Sweetgreen, Inc.2025Jonathan Neman550,00002,675,93703,226,081
First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc.not in coverage universe
Dutch Bros Inc.not in coverage universe
Freshpet, Inc.not in coverage universe

Each peer's compensation is from its most recently filed proxy; fiscal years differ by company. Each peer's figures come from its own filings; the subject company is highlighted. Peers whose chief executive compensation is outside our coverage universe are stated as such, never left blank.

10c

Incentive design against the same peers

CompanyAnnual incentive payoutLong-term vehicle mixPSU measures include TSRCompensation consultant
Cava Groupnot disclosedRSU 50 · PSU 50not disclosedPearl Meyer & Partners, LLC
Dutch Bros Inc.not disclosednot disclosednot disclosednot disclosed
e.l.f. Beauty, Inc.200%PSU 50 · RSU 50NoAon (Aon's Human Capital Solutions practice, a division of Aon plc.)
First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc.not disclosednot disclosednot disclosednot disclosed
Five Below, Inc.200%PSU 60 · RSU 40NoMeridian
Freshpet, Inc.not disclosednot disclosednot disclosednot disclosed
Maplebear Inc.not disclosedRSU 100not disclosedCompensia
Planet Fitness, Inc.114.9%PSU 50 · RSU 50NoMeridian Compensation Partners, LLC
Shake Shack Inc.67.5%PSU 60 · RSU 40NoPearl Meyer & Partners
Sweetgreen, Inc.not disclosedOptions 100not disclosedSemler Brossy Consulting Group LLC
Texas Roadhouse, Inc.65%RSU 50 · PSU 50NoFW Cook
Wingstop Inc.142%PSU 60 · RSU 40NoFW Cook
YETI Holdings, Inc.71.0%PBRSU 75 · RSU 25Yes — Relative Total Stockholder Return (TSR)FW Cook

Read from each company's Compensation Discussion and Analysis: annual incentive payout as a percentage of target, the disclosed long-term vehicle mix, whether performance-share measures include a total shareholder return component, and the retained compensation consultant. “Not disclosed” appears only where the company's filing does not state the item.

11

Source register

Each figure's location is given both for the eye (section · page · table · row · column) and for a script (table/row/column index and exact character span in the filed document). Any figure can be independently confirmed against the source.

#SupportsDocumentFiledAccessionLocation in document
1Section 01, Brett SchulmanDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Summary Compensation Table” · page 37. As printed: 3,859,478. Filing ↗machine: r4 · c24 · span 549451–549460
2Section 01, Jennifer SomersDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Summary Compensation Table” · page 37. As printed: 2,378,886. Filing ↗machine: r28 · c24 · span 591600–591609
3Section 01, Tricia TolivarDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Summary Compensation Table” · page 37. As printed: 2,304,497. Filing ↗machine: r9 · c24 · span 558907–558916
4Section 01, Kelly CostanzaDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Summary Compensation Table” · page 37. As printed: 1,536,483. Filing ↗machine: r19 · c24 · span 577805–577814
5Section 01, Theodoros XenohristosDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Summary Compensation Table” · page 37. As printed: 1,531,356. Filing ↗machine: r14 · c24 · span 568363–568372
6Section 01, Robert BertramDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Summary Compensation Table” · page 37. As printed: 1,102,477. Filing ↗machine: r23 · c24 · span 586979–586988
7Section 03, Robert Bertram RSUDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards Table” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 585592–585599
8Section 03, Robert Bertram OPTIONDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards Table” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 585939–585946
9Section 03, Kelly Costanza RSUDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards Table” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 576650–576657
10Section 03, Kelly Costanza OPTIONDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards Table” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 576939–576946
11Section 03, Brett Schulman RSUDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards Table” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 548294–548301
12Section 03, Brett Schulman OPTIONDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards Table” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 548583–548592
13Section 03, Jennifer Somers RSUDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards Table” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 590444–590451
14Section 03, Jennifer Somers OPTIONDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards Table” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 590733–590740
15Section 03, Tricia Tolivar RSUDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards Table” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 557752–557759
16Section 03, Tricia Tolivar OPTIONDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards Table” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 558041–558048
17Section 03, Theodoros Xenohristos RSUDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards Table” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 567208–567215
18Section 03, Theodoros Xenohristos OPTIONDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards Table” · grants of plan-based awards table. Filing ↗machine: span 567497–567504
19Section 07, pay ratioDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “CEO Pay Ratio”. As printed: 179 : 1. Filing ↗machine: span 915527–915530
20Section 08, Ronald ShaichDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 291,854. Filing ↗
21Section 08, Lauri ShanahanDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 231,854. Filing ↗
22Section 08, James D. WhiteDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 231,854. Filing ↗
23Section 08, David BossermanDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 231,854. Filing ↗
24Section 08, Karen KochevarDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 224,354. Filing ↗
25Section 08, Benjamin FeltDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 214,354. Filing ↗
26Section 08, Philippe AmouyalDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 211,854. Filing ↗
27Section 08, Brett SchulmanDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 0. Filing ↗
28Section 08, Theodoros XenohristosDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 0. Filing ↗
29Section 06, 2026 voteForm 8-K2026-06-240001628280-26-045042Item 5.07 · say-on-pay result. As reported: 87.77% (votes for as printed: 75,849,587). Filing ↗
30Section 06, 2025 voteForm 8-K2025-06-250001628280-25-033039Item 5.07 · say-on-pay result. As reported: 91.61% (votes for as printed: 70,325,814). Filing ↗
31Section 01 trend, Δ column (computed)ComputedcomputedΔ = current-FY total − prior-FY total per named officer.machine: formula: Δ = FY(n) − FY(n−1)
32Section 03b vehicle mix (computed)ComputedcomputedRSU / PSU / Options grant-date fair values summed per officer from the grants table; % performance-vested = PSU ÷ (RSU+PSU+Options).machine: formula: sums + PSU ratio
33Section 09b board cost (computed)ComputedcomputedCash 715,000 + equity 922,978 + all other 0 = 1,637,978, summed across the director compensation table rows.machine: formula: Σ = 1,637,978
34Wingstop Inc., Section 10b CEO totalDEF 14A2026-04-020001193125-26-140360CEO total compensation as printed in Wingstop Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 35,288,595. Filing ↗machine: t256 · r4 · c39 · span 885907–885917
35Maplebear Inc., Section 10b CEO totalDEF 14A2026-04-090001579091-26-000024CEO total compensation as printed in Maplebear Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 29,847,540. Filing ↗machine: t48 · r2 · c14 · span 584103–584113
36Texas Roadhouse, Inc., Section 10b CEO totalDEF 14A2026-04-100001104659-26-041771CEO total compensation as printed in Texas Roadhouse, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 10,822,133. Filing ↗machine: t125 · r3 · c14 · span 1328962–1328972
37Five Below, Inc., Section 10b CEO totalDEF 14A2026-05-010001193125-26-199315CEO total compensation as printed in Five Below, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 10,814,084. Filing ↗machine: r2 · c27 · span 514821–514831
38e.l.f. Beauty, Inc., Section 10b CEO totalDEF 14A2026-07-080001600033-26-000030CEO total compensation as printed in e.l.f. Beauty, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 8,834,367. Filing ↗machine: r2 · c36 · span 1742102–1742112
39Planet Fitness, Inc., Section 10b CEO totalDEF 14A2026-03-250001637207-26-000019CEO total compensation as printed in Planet Fitness, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 8,237,348. Filing ↗machine: r4 · c39 · span 727315–727324
40YETI Holdings, Inc., Section 10b CEO totalDEF 14A2026-03-260001140361-26-011375CEO total compensation as printed in YETI Holdings, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 7,697,528. Filing ↗machine: r2 · c22 · span 1046975–1046984
41Shake Shack Inc., Section 10b CEO totalDEF 14A2026-04-290001104659-26-051572CEO total compensation as printed in Shake Shack Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 7,210,818. Filing ↗machine: r1 · c54 · span 604209–604218
42Cava Group (subject), Section 10b CEO totalDEF 14A2026-04-240001628280-26-027224CEO total compensation as printed in Cava Group's own proxy. As printed: 3,859,478. Filing ↗machine: r4 · c24 · span 549451–549460
43Sweetgreen, Inc., Section 10b CEO totalDEF 14A2026-04-230001140361-26-016260CEO total compensation as printed in Sweetgreen, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 3,226,081. Filing ↗machine: r2 · c25 · span 758912–758922
44Section 10a, Maplebear Inc. reciprocityDEF 14A0001579091-26-000024Maplebear Inc.'s most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include Cava Group. Filing ↗
45Section 10a, Shake Shack Inc. reciprocityDEF 14A0001104659-26-051572Shake Shack Inc. names Cava Group in its own disclosed peer group (read from its most recent proxy). Filing ↗
46Section 10a, e.l.f. Beauty, Inc. reciprocityDEF 14A0001600033-26-000030e.l.f. Beauty, Inc. names Cava Group in its own disclosed peer group (read from its most recent proxy). Filing ↗
47Section 10a, Sweetgreen, Inc. reciprocityDEF 14A0001140361-26-016260Sweetgreen, Inc. names Cava Group in its own disclosed peer group (read from its most recent proxy). Filing ↗
48Section 10a, YETI Holdings, Inc. reciprocityDEF 14A0001140361-26-011375YETI Holdings, Inc.'s most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include Cava Group. Filing ↗
49Section 10a, Texas Roadhouse, Inc. reciprocityDEF 14A0001104659-26-041771Texas Roadhouse, Inc.'s most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include Cava Group. Filing ↗
50Section 10a, Wingstop Inc. reciprocityDEF 14A0001193125-26-140360Wingstop Inc. names Cava Group in its own disclosed peer group (read from its most recent proxy). Filing ↗
51Section 10a, Planet Fitness, Inc. reciprocityDEF 14A0001637207-26-000019Planet Fitness, Inc.'s most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include Cava Group. Filing ↗
52Section 10a, Five Below, Inc. reciprocityDEF 14A0001193125-26-199315Five Below, Inc.'s most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include Cava Group. Filing ↗