Startup Obituary : Planta

“Plants can change the world.”

That was the pitch. And for a while, it looked like they just might.

🌱 The Vision

In 2016, after watching the documentary Cowspiracy, Steven Salm—then president of Toronto’s Chase Hospitality Group—had a revelation. The environmental toll of meat wasn’t just alarming; it was personal. So, he made a pivot: sell the steakhouse, ditch the seafood, and go all-in on plants.

Together with executive chef David Lee, he launched Planta, a restaurant chain that aimed to make vegan food chic, not crunchy. The mission? Turn plant-based dining into an “unguilty pleasure.”

And it worked—until it didn’t.

🥑 What Made Planta Stand Out

This wasn’t your neighborhood tempeh-and-tofu café.

Planta rolled out three distinct concepts:

• Planta – the flagship: upscale vegan burgers, truffle udon, and smoked beet tartare.

• Planta Queen – Asian-inspired: watermelon nigiri, vegan sushi rolls, wok-fried noodles.

• Planta Cocina – Latin twist: jackfruit “wings,” tacos, tamales, and churros (yes, vegan).

They even grew their own produce on a rooftop garden in Miami. The whole experience was curated—sleek interiors, craft cocktails, and no meat in sight. It was fine dining, reimagined for the Instagram age.

The vibe? More Soho House than Whole Foods.

🚀 The Rise

Planta wasn’t just popular—it was hot.

Revenue climbed from $3.5M in 2016 to $46M in 2024.

The brand expanded to 18 locations: Miami, NYC, LA, Chicago, Atlanta, Toronto.

Pharrell, Bella Hadid, and influencers galore were regulars.

This wasn’t a cult vegan joint—it was a scene.

One Miami food critic called Planta Queen’s truffle udon a “12 out of 10.” Another compared the watermelon nigiri to real tuna. Plant-based eating had gone bougie.

And Salm bet the house on it. By 2022, Chase Hospitality sold off all non-Planta restaurants to focus fully on this one idea.

💰 The Backing

Planta wasn’t built on tofu alone.

Investors backed the mission—including hedge fund Anchorage Capital Group, who reportedly took a 49% stake via convertible note. But unlike some better-diversified funding structures, this setup would become a serious pain point later.

No franchises. No merch. No frozen food aisle. Just dine-in—and lots of it.

🛑 The Crash

On May 12, 2025, Planta filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Assets? Between $50K–$100K.

Liabilities? Between $10M–$50M.

The brand that once sparked a plant-based empire was officially in distress.

What happened?

1. 🌍 The Pandemic Hangover

COVID crushed construction timelines.

Supply chains unraveled.

Hiring froze.

Third-party delivery fees ate margins.

Planta had ambitious plans—12 new restaurants in 3 years—but the timing was brutal. Rent payments didn’t pause, even if openings did.

2. 🔥 Expansion Burnout

Fast growth is exciting. Until it isn’t.

From 2020–2023, Planta scaled like a tech startup, not a restaurant group. But this wasn’t software—it was real estate, labor, leases, kitchens. Each new opening cost millions and came with risk.

In LA, they owed $613K in unpaid rent to one landlord. Multiply that by 17 locations, and the math gets scary.

As WeWork taught us: scaling without unit economics = disaster.

3. 🥴 Market Misread

Planta believed the plant-based boom would keep booming. But by 2024, signs pointed the other way:

• Beyond Meat saw a 23.5% drop in foodservice revenue.

• Kevin Hart’s Hart House closed all its locations.

• Consumers, squeezed by inflation, stopped splurging on $20 vegan burgers.

Planta’s high-end pricing—designed for flexitarians and foodies—clashed with tighter wallets and cooling interest in meat alternatives.

4. 💸 Financing Missteps

Planta’s biggest creditor, Anchorage Capital, had extended financing via convertible notes. But when cash ran short, the terms became a trap.

By March 2025, they couldn’t meet their obligations.

By January, landlords weren’t getting paid.

By April, attempts to raise more money had failed.

With no new capital, bankruptcy was the only way out.

📉 The Bigger Picture

Planta wasn’t alone. In the past 24 months:

• Slutty Vegan scaled cautiously.

• Hart House shut down.

• The category cooled across fast-casual and premium spaces alike.

The vegan wave, it turned out, wasn’t a tidal wave—it was a swell. And many brands mistook it for a forever trend.

As one analyst put it: “Everyone saw growth in 2019 and assumed it would 10x. But trends shift. So do taste buds.”

🧠 Lessons for Founders

1. Don’t outrun your operations: If you’re building physical locations, pace matters. Scaling before proving profitability is dangerous.

2. Test markets, then expand: What works in Miami may flop in LA. Don’t roll out until you’ve iterated and learned.

3. Secure diversified capital: Tying yourself to a single funding source (especially with debt covenants) can backfire. VCs, angels, and revenue should be your base.

4. Follow consumer trends, not just beliefs: Mission matters. But you need product–market fit. If consumers shift, you need to pivot.

5. Keep cash reserves sacred: A $46M revenue business filing with just $100K in assets means something was structurally off.

Planta Scorecard

🕯️ Final Words

Planta tried to rebrand vegan food as sexy, elegant, craveable. And for a moment, it worked. It showed that plant-based eating didn’t have to mean sacrifice—it could be luxurious.

But ambition outpaced cash. Timing clashed with macro headwinds. And vision couldn’t shield it from economics.

Still, its influence lingers: in menus, in mindset, in the fact that the next time you eat a jackfruit taco, you might just thank Planta for helping put it on the map.

Planta’s story is a reminder that socially responsible ventures aren’t always financially sustainable—and that a shrewd entrepreneur must balance idealism with sound business fundamentals.

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Cheers,

Ram

StartupObituary.com 

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