Chipotle offers teachers free foodChipotle offers teachers free food

Anyone who works at a school can get a free burrito, bowl, salad or tacos at Chipotle Mexican Grill on May 3 in honor of Teacher Appreciation Day, the company said Monday.

The buy-one-get-one offer on May 3 targets teachers, faculty and school staff from preschool through the university level who show valid school identification. Homeschooling parents with valid ID can also participate. 

The offer is valid at all U.S. Chipotle restaurants from 3 p.m. to closing, local time, but cannot be used for online, mobile, fax or catering orders.

“Teachers are constantly working to cultivate a better world in the classroom, and the same goes for our company,” said Chris Arnold, Chipotle communications director, in a statement. “Teachers help shape the young minds of their students, planting the seeds of knowledge that will grow forever, and that is something we are happy to recognize and celebrate.”

Additionally, in a text offer on Monday, Chipotle said customers who buy $25 or more in gift cards in restaurants before June 10 will receive a free burrito — a promotion designed to take advantage of graduation season.

The move comes on the eve of Chipotle’s first-quarter earnings report Tuesday, in which executives are expected to offer an update on the ongoing plan to bring back customers scared off by months of foodborne illness reports at the end of last year.

Chipotle executives have warned that they expect to report a loss for the first quarter.

For the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, same-store sales declined 14.6 percent, and net income fell 44 percent, to $67.9 million.

In February, same-store sales dropped 26.1 percent, which was an improvement over the 36.4-percent slide in January.

Chipotle executives have indicated that marketing efforts, including free-food coupons and buy-one-get-one-free offers, have helped improve transaction trends. The company expected to invest about $70 million in promotions between February and May this year.

Analysts expect Chipotle to report improved traffic trends in April, driven primarily by freebies and coupons. But some say the offers will likely continue beyond May.

In a report Monday, Stephen Anderson of Maxim Group said that Chipotle will be forced to “buy its sales” for an extended time.
 
Industry observers have been documenting the success of Chipotle promotions.

Foot-traffic tracking firm Placed said Monday that Chipotle traffic hit bottom in January, with visits from 8.06 percent of the U.S. population. Before the foodborne illness crisis, almost 9.5 percent of the U.S. population visited a Chipotle restaurant in a given month, the firm said.

In February and March, Chipotle’s visit share showed upticks tied to free food offers, Placed said.

In March, 8.81 percent of the U.S. population visited a Chipotle restaurant, nearly matching the 8.86 percent of March 2015, before the foodborne illness crises began.

Surveys in April indicated that customers were happy to be back, according to Placed.

Ninety percent of surveyed customers were aware of the E. coli outbreaks, and 21 percent said they had lowered their visit frequency as a result.

But 70 percent of surveyed customers said they were likely to return in the next month, and 46 percent had visited a Chipotle within the past two weeks.

Free-food coupons drove 19 percent of surveyed customers, but another 46 percent said their primary reason for visiting was a craving for Chipotle.

Another survey the first week of April by investment bank Cowen & Co. showed that 41 percent of respondents who received a freebie coupon visited Chipotle 3.8 times over the previous 30 days, compared with 1.4 times for the 59 percent who didn’t receive a coupon, according to a Wall Street Journal report.

Contact Lisa Jennings at [email protected]
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