July 29th 2024.
Brian Niccol, the Chairman and CEO of Chipotle, has taken notice of the complaints from customers regarding their portion sizes. During an earnings call with investors on July 24th, he addressed the company's "generous portions" and how it plays into their overall culture.
Niccol made it clear that there has never been a directive to provide less to customers. In fact, the generous portion sizes have always been a core part of the Chipotle brand and will continue to be. However, he did mention that the feedback they received prompted them to take a closer look at how they execute their portions across all their restaurants. Their goal is to always serve their guests with delicious and fresh custom burritos and bowls, with generous portions.
These comments from Niccol came after social media users began joking about how Chipotle servers were not giving enough meat in their orders. The issue gained more attention when internet food critic Keith Lee posted a Tik-Tok video in May, showcasing a quesadilla hack at Chipotle that quickly went viral. In the video, Lee jokingly asked, "Where's the chicken?" This sparked a discussion on social media about portion sizes at the restaurant.
In the same month, Niccol defended Chipotle to Fortune, stating that customers have the power to ask for more if they are unsatisfied with their portions. He even demonstrated this by giving customers a tip on how to get more rice or salsa. However, as complaints continued, Niccol acknowledged that there were inconsistencies in portions at some locations. He stated that around 10% of their restaurants needed to be retrained or coached to meet Chipotle's standards.
Niccol also mentioned that positive customer feedback, both online and offline, would help spread the word about the changes being made at some of their locations. He believes that word of mouth is the best form of marketing, and as customers have better experiences with Chipotle, they will share it with others.
Despite having raised prices in recent years, Niccol assured investors that there are currently no plans to increase prices further. He shared that Chipotle's sales have increased by 11% in their last quarter, as reported by NPR. This was due to their stores being more efficient and faster, along with their limited-time promotion for chicken al pastor.
It's evident that Chipotle is not slowing down, and their business is growing. This raises the question, is it because their portions are getting smaller? According to Yahoo Finance, the consistency of Chipotle's portions has varied widely, with some locations serving bowls with identical orders that weighed 33% less. However, Niccol stated that they are focused on retraining and coaching those restaurants to be more consistent with their portion sizes. He believes that this, along with positive customer feedback, will continue to drive their success.
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