Chipotle is hoping its customers have gotten over that whole food-borne illness thing and will trust it to make tasty burgers, with its new venture dubbed “Tasty Made.” [More]
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Chipotle Sales Still Down: Customers Have Come Back, But Don’t Return As Often
By 7.22.16
Chipotle Mexican Grill founder and co-CEO Steve Ells told investors, analytsts, and reporters in a conference call late yesterday that the company’s sales recovery “continued at a modest pace” over the last few months. Translation: as polls before this earnings release predicted, customers still aren’t coming back. Comparable store sales are still low, but the company is profitable again, and it has great hopes for its summer rewards program. [More]
Polls Show Chipotle’s Customers Still Haven’t All Come Back
By 7.15.16
Burrito eatery Chipotle needs something very important to recover financially from its recent food safety crisis: it needs all of its customers to come back, and keep coming back. Since eradicating foodborne pathogens from its restaurants, Chipotle has tried offering everyone free burritos, buy-one-get-one promotions, and a loyalty program to bring customers in. It’s sort of working. [More]
How One Tweet May Have Caused Chipotle’s Stock To Sink
By 7.7.16
Over the past several months, Chipotle has worked to rebuild its reputation, sales, and stock figures after enduring several high-profile outbreaks of E. coli and norovirus. All of those efforts may have been undone, however, with one simple Tweet alleging that the burrito chain may be responsible for sending a New York City customer to the hospital. [More]
Chipotle Adding Spicy Chorizo To The Menu So Customers Forget About All That Other Stuff
By 6.29.16
In the more than 20 years that it’s been in business, Chipotle hasn’t changed its menu very much. That’s why it’s notable that the burrito eatery is slowly rolling out a new protein, just over two years after introducing braised tofu that they had to bribe everyone to try. Only a few select markets get to try the new chorizo for now, though. [More]
Chipotle Will Begin Temporary Loyalty Program, Chiptopia, This Week
By 6.27.16
Chipotle needs two things: they need customers to start coming in to buy food, and they need those customers to keep coming back. After mailing and texting out free burrito coupons and buy-one-get-one-free offers earlier this year, the company’s newest idea to turn things around is a limited-time loyalty program. [More]
Everyone Still Loves Chick-Fil-A; Chipotle, Not So Much
By 6.21.16
There’s good news out there for most of the big restaurant and fast-food chains: customers who like them, continue to like them, and overall find everything about their experiences to be entirely satisfactory. [More]
Chipotle Shareholders Sue Company, Allege Recklessness And Insider Trading
By 6.20.16
Did the executives and the board of fast-casual Mexican chain Chipotle enrich themselves by inflating the company’s stock price, overpay themselves with shares of that over-valued stock, and let the chain’s potential food-safety problems slide? That’s what some shareholders claim in a lawsuit, saying that the company also misled its investors about food-safety practices that would eventually contribute to multiple outbreaks. [More]
Chipotle Accused CDC Of Scaring Customers With Updates On E. Coli Outbreak
By 5.10.16
In the wake of outbreaks of E. coli and norovirus, Chipotle has made a relatively public display of its efforts to improve — giving away free food while implementing new safety standards. However, the burrito chain believes that one federal agency’s constant updates about these outbreaks ultimately resulted in customers fretting too much about food safety. [More]
Chipotle To Expand Chorizo, Consider Loyalty Program To Bring In New And ‘Lapsed’ Customers
By 4.27.16
Last year, Chipotle’s food-safety crisis led the burrito eatery’s business to plummet, with same-store sales plunging as low as 37% in December 2015. In 2016, though, there have been no reported outbreaks, and the company has been mailing and texting out coupons to draw old and new customers. The massive giveaways of food are now over, and the chain is moving on to new promotional methods, including buy one, get one free entrées and potentially a loyalty program. [More]
Chipotle Lures Customers Back With Free Burritos That Don’t Make Them Sick
By 4.25.16
What’s the best way to prove to the American public that your food won’t make them sick? Convince them to try your food again, and don’t make them sick. That’s been Chipotle’s recovery plan, and it’s working pretty well. In addition to serving up raincheck burritos (in exchange for capturing your phone number) the company also sent out coupons offering free entrées, free sides, and free beverages to lure customers back. According to one firm’s research, this plan worked. [More]
Chipotle Temporarily Closes Restaurant After Someone Inside Becomes Ill
By 4.6.16
Following very public bouts with E. coli and norovirus outbreaks at its restaurants in recent months, Chipotle revamped its safety protocols, mandating that stores be temporarily shut down if someone inside becomes sick. That plan was put into motion Tuesday when a Virginia restaurant closed around lunchtime. [More]
Man Says He’s “Extremely Lucky” After Falling Chipotle Sign Crushes Car With Him Inside
By 4.5.16
While a story that starts with a heavy object crushing a car is never going to be a total win for those involved, an Indianapolis man says he’s just grateful that he emerged relatively unscathed after a Chipotle sign fell on his car… while he was sitting inside it. [More]
Chipotle Trademarks Name ‘Better Burger,’ Thinking About Fast-Casual Burger Chain
By 3.30.16
Would you eat a burger from Chipotle? No, not at Chipotle, but a fast-casual burger restsaurant that uses the same food-sourcing and cooking methods, and has a similar vibe and a GMO-free menu? The company, which also runs pizza and pan-Asian noodle restaurants modeled on its main brand, trademarked the phrase “Better Burger,” which sounds like a nice name for a burger place. [More]
Chipotle May Change Some Of Its Food-Safety Changes Back
By 3.16.16
After outbreaks of Salmonella, norovirus, and E. coli that made hundreds of diners sick, burrito eatery Chipotle made some changes to its food-handling practices, which included processing more food in central “canteen” facilities, adding lemon juice to chopped vegetables, and testing all of their ingredients for pathogens. While facing low sales and an expensive food giveaway, Chipotle is considering maybe rolling some of those changes back. [More]
Massachusetts Chipotle Shut Down Temporarily After Employee Diagnosed With Norovirus
By 3.8.16
In an apparent effort to pre-empt a norovirus outbreak like the one that sickened more than 150 people in Boston a few months ago, Chipotle has temporarily closed a restaurant in the nearby town of Billerica after a worker there was diagnosed with the virus. [More]
Analysts Say Chipotle’s Customers Are Suffering From “Menu Fatigue”
By 2.23.16
If you’ve ever been to Chipotle before, you know exactly what you can expect: burritos/burrito bowls, tacos, fajitas, and salads that can be made from a combination of toppings and fillings. Those ingredients have remained basically unchanged over the years (besides the addition of tofu sofritas in 2014). But while that familiarity might be comforting, Chipotle’s lack of new offerings is causing “menu fatigue” in some customers that could make it harder for the chain to come back after its recent food safety issues. [More]
Lawyer Bombarded With Errant Texts Demanding Free Chipotle Burritos
By 2.9.16
On one end of the wrong-number spectrum is the lawyer who still gets calls and texts intended for Sir Mix-A-Lot, on the other end is the D.C.-area attorney who received some 300 text messages yesterday from people seeking free burritos from Chipotle. [More]
