Chipotle mulls further UK expansion
During a recent earnings call covering the US burrito brand's fourth quarter and full year 2020 results, chief executive Brian Niccol said the chain had some plans in place to further expand in countries it has already established restaurants in, including the UK.
"Obviously, we believe Chipotle can travel beyond the United States," he said.
"We're already seeing some success in Canada. And then, obviously, we've got some plans in place for places that we already have our foot in the door.
"So think of the UK, France specifically. And so you're going to see us starting to really use kind of our stage-gate process to move those markets along. And then we'll evaluate other regions accordingly."
Chipotle made its UK debut on London’s Charing Cross Road in 2010 and has since expanded to central locations across the capital.
In early 2019 it opened its first UK restaurant in three and a half years in the City of London.
According to Chipotle's website, it currently operates a total of eight London locations.
Speaking to Restaurant magazine back in 2012, Chipotle UK's then managing director Jacob Sumner said the brand was targeting a more gradual expansion in the UK compared to the US, citing hyper-growth as ‘very risky’.
Chipotle opened its first restaurant in Denver, Colorado in 1993 and globally operates more than 2,500 sites.
