Deal for MAD Greens and Snappy Salads units puts Minnesota-based chain on track for 100 locations by year’s end
Photo: Crisp & Green
October 13, 2026 by Cherryh Cansler — Publisher, FastCasual.com
Minnesota-based Crisp & Green has agreed to acquire and rebrand 33 MAD Greens and Snappy Salads restaurants from Salad Collective, the brand umbrella owned by the Coors family, a deal that would push the better-for-you fast-casual chain to 100 units by the end of 2026, according to a company press release.
Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Crisp & Green opened its first restaurant in Minnesota in 2016. The company said the acquisition, combined with previously scheduled openings, would get it to the 100-unit mark in 10 years. It has grown through corporate development, franchising and investment from friends and family, without institutional capital.
The Coors family will become a strategic minority partner in Crisp & Green as part of the deal. The company plans to convert the acquired restaurants to the Crisp & Green banner over time.
The acquisition will take Crisp & Green into new markets, including Phoenix and Austin, Texas, and deepen its presence in Denver and Dallas, the company said.
“We’ve built this business without institutional capital, and this transaction represents an exciting next chapter in our story,” Steele Smiley, founder and executive chairman of Crisp & Green, said in the release.
Smiley said the chain has deliberately focused on the Midwest and central U.S. rather than coastal markets.
“That demand isn’t limited to New York, Los Angeles or other major coastal cities,” he said.
Darden Coors, chairman of Salad Collective and a2026 inductee into the Fast Casual Hall of Fame, said the deal fits the company’s strategy.
“They bring together the right brand, seasoned leadership, and passionate franchise partners to execute the next phase of that vision,” she said.
Crisp & Green said it will continue to grow through restaurant development, franchise partnerships and integration of the acquired locations.
The chain’s menu includes wraps, sandwiches, salads, grain bowls and smoothies, and it positions itself around a wellness mission it calls “Power Better Days.” The brand also hosts community events and fitness programming.
Want to hear more?
Check out Smiley on the Founderology podcast, hosted by Kathleen Wood.
About Cherryh Cansler
Cherryh Cansler is Publisher of FastCasual.com and Vice President of Connect Food. She has been covering the restaurant industry since 2012. Her byline has appeared in Forbes, The Kansas City Star and American Fitness magazine, among many others.
