, Columnist
Chipotle Is Starting to Return to Form
An increase in customer visits is the latest sign that CEO Brian Niccol’s turnaround is on the right track.
The burrito chain rediscovers its missing ingredient.
Photographer: Caitlin O'Hara/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
If Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. is to enjoy a bona fide turnaround, it can’t be built solely on price increases and side orders of queso. So it’s noteworthy that the burrito giant notched a win on another important metric in the latest quarter.
Chipotle said Wednesday that transactions rose by 2 percent from a year earlier. The figure is a proxy for traffic, and the gain snapped a streak in which its comparable sales growth was being fueled by fatter average checks rather than increased customer visits.