Chipotle CFO Jack Hartung answers questions about how to deal with inflationary pressures, the burrito bowl robot and the company’s stock split.
Despite signs that Americans still crave their favorite burrito bowls and are willing to pay extra for guacamole, Chipotle is carefully monitoring consumer behavior as labor and menu costs rise. I’m monitoring it.
” [California] “The minimum wage, the minimum wage increase just went into effect earlier this month,” Chief Financial Officer Jack Hartun said on “The Big Money Show” on Tuesday.
“We implemented a modest price increase of 6-7%. We’ve been monitoring the traffic since we made the price increase. We haven’t seen anything yet, we haven’t seen a change in behavior yet,” he continued. . “It’s still early, so we’ll be watching carefully.”
Prices at Chipotle, McDonald’s and other fast-food giants in California have reportedly increased since the minimum wage hike went into effect a month ago.
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“Chipotle said on an investor call Wednesday that prices at its roughly 500 California restaurants rose 6% to 7% in the first week of April compared to last year, and that was reflected across menus. Stated.” wall street journal It was reported on Sunday.
Chipotle Chief Financial Officer Jack Hartung spoke on “The Big Money Show” about the restaurant chain’s menu price hikes. (Getty Images)
Chipotle CEO Brian Nicol was quoted as saying, “The state is not making it easy.”
“Like the rest of the restaurant industry, in light of California’s new law increasing wages for restaurant workers, Chipotle CEO Lori Shallow said in a statement to Fox News Digital on Monday that We have raised prices,” he said. . ”
Hartung added that Chipotle patrons are still coming to the restaurant chain, and the company is counting on flexible consumers to sustain its quick-service model.
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“Our first quarter was excellent, with revenue up 7%, of which more than 5% was due to transaction growth, which we know is difficult to achieve in this environment. “What we are most proud of is that when we look at our customers by income bracket, our lower-income consumers are represented at the same rate as our higher-income consumers,” the CFO noted.
“This shows us that we really offer great value and charge a fair price for it.”
Echoing a similar message from celebrity chef Robert Irvine, Hartung talked about how Chipotle is turning to technology to do simple tasks without eliminating human workers at a time when business is costly. Explained how they are investing in robots that can reassign tasks.
Chipotle’s line chef robots will focus solely on online orders, ensuring on-time delivery and minimizing ingredient errors, the chief financial officer said.
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Chipotle’s “cobots” are designed to work alongside human employees, increasing their efficiency and ability to fulfill digital orders.
“You’re not going to see robots on the front lines. So if you’re going to go into the field and sweet talk and try to get a little extra rice or a little extra ingredient along the way, that opportunity is still Yes,” Hartung said. .
“During peak lunch hours and peak dinner hours, it can get very busy,” he acknowledged. “We’re not going to replace our employees, but we’re going to make their jobs a lot easier.”
FOX Business’ Jeffrey Clark contributed to this report.
