Amber Haring, Christy Swyres, Christy Baze
SU 2015 Section 9B
Webster University
William Cornwell
June 22, 2015
Chipotle Mexican Grill
1. Do you think CMG is a successful company?
The Chipotle mission statement:
“Food with integrity is our commitment to finding the very best ingredients raised with respect for the animals, the environment and the farmers. It means serving the very best sustainable raised food possible with an eye to great taste, great nutrition and great value.”
This is the context which Chipotle uses to determine their success.
Chipotle has made a mission a corporate passion. Not only have they lead the food industry in sustainable food sourcing, they have expanded their philosophy to striving for LEED certification in their buildings. They pride themselves on providing the highest quality food at reasonable prices. Does moral success translate to financial success?
Steve Ellis started a taco shop in Denver, CO with the intent of reinventing Mexican food. He didn’t want fast food, he wanted real food. Despite his nay-sayers stating no one would want to pay $5 for a burrito, no one wants to see an open kitchen and certainly no one will stand in line to have something assemble before them, by 1998 he had opened 16 restaurants and McDonald’s decided to back his endeavors. With McDonald’s investment, the company grew to 500 stores by 2005. By January 26, 2006, Chipotle made its IPO and in October 2006, McDonald’s divested for $1.5 billion dollars.
Financially speaking, net cash flows remain strong and positive. Their stock prices have rebounded very well since the financial crash in 2009, where the price was $47.76 to today where it is currently $608.67. They are operating approximately 1800 restaurants including ChopHouse Southeast Asian Kitchen.
In comparison to its competitors, CMG spends less in labor and building costs. Where it consistently spends more is in food and packaging, which