Once again, the amateurs jumped to conclusions – and were just plain wrong! But the ‘news’ spread far and toxic, like the gas clouds after a chemical plant spill. The good news: Chipotle is NOT in financial trouble again…
Farmesa Fresh Eatery was supposed to be a spinoff from Chipotle,
but was abandoned in 2024 after it failed to win fans over from
competitors such as already established Sweetgreen and Cava
It started as a single erroneous online post. But the ‘news’ quickly rose to the top, making headlines on ABC’s flagship morning show, Good Morning America, before being slapped down.
Chipotle can’t shake notoriety
It seems Chipotle, which was wracked by financial and PR issues a few years back, can’t shake the clouds that have been following around since.
And every time some social media hack posts about the chain, the vultures start to circle.
This time, it was a single incorrect social media post, which Chipotle says has been taken down.
What happened?
The post leaned heavily on a blurb that appeared on a Spanish news service, called Unión Rayo, about Farmesa Fresh, a single-spinoff restaurant that Chipotle had tested and ended up closing in 2024. Seems the story’s Spanish headline didn’t translate well to English at all, and hysteria ensued. The story has been corrected and an accurrate version is now online.
In fact, the chain says business has never been better.
Alive and kicking
The original story was quickly refuted by Chipotle after confirmation was requested by ABC News. And actually resulted in sort of mini-state-of-the brand report being issued.
Far from being in any trouble, Chipotle says it’s going strong, planning to open as many as 345 new restaurants in 2025. The company also said it plans to include a Chipotlane – the chain’s drive-thru model – in at least 80 percent of the new restaurants. That’s a feature that virtually all top-tier fast casual and fast Food restos are headlining on their next generation stores.
Financially, Chipotle reported zero debt and more than $2 billion in cash reserves at the end of the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2024, with $11.3 billion in total revenue in 2024, up over 14 percent compared to 2023.
The Farmesa saga
The Farmesa Fresh Eatery cncept was part of a ‘fresh eating’ spinoff tested in 2023-24 by Xhipotle, along the lines of newspinofffs being tested now by McDonald’s and taco Bell. The idea was intended to be Chiopotle’s ‘Resto of the Future’ offering, relying heavily on autoaton, digital tech and various drive-Thru, takeout and delivery fulfillment models.
Alas, industry observers now say, the chain’s marketing brain trust made some fundamental errors in jujduegemnt.
“Despite carrying an innovative healthy food concept, not many people recognized that Farmesa belonged to Chipotle, since the latter is synonymous with high-calorie food rather than salads,” a story on Union Rayo speculated. “On the other hand, Farmesa operated only in California (expecting, of course, to expand to other states), but the competition was much greater, as companies like Sweetgreen and Cava already dominated that sector [there].”
My take
Chipotle fall on hard ties for a while, there, a few years back after a string of food poisoning incidents and ensuing customer abandonment. But after buying-in a corporate turnaround wizard, the brand enjoyed a comeback that’s been strong and steady. Like many Fast Food and Fast-casual restaurants, Chipotle’s has forged a new life back in it’s original role as a burrito and bowl place…
Which is good news to me. It’s one of only a few Tex-Mex joints I’ve gone back to more than once…
~ Maggie J.
ps://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Food/chipotle-refutes-bankruptcy-rumors-plans-open-restaurants/story?id=120210601