Chipotle Mexican Grill is an iconic international American restaurant founded in Denver, Colorado, by businessman Steve Ells. The restaurant’s performance is primarily related to its capacity to provide fresh, fast-food supplies. This changed when a string of food-borne illness outbreaks drove customers away from Chipotle’s chains. In august 2015, 64 customers became ill from a salmonella incident in Minnesota after dining at Chipotle Mexican Grill, which the government’s health department traced to adulterated tomatoes (Thompson, 2018). Simultaneously, 80 consumers and 18 staffers of the Chipotle restaurant chain in Southern California experienced stomach problems, including purging, and dysentery, which were associated with norovirus by health practitioners (Thompson, 2018). The staff members who tested positive for the infection were the prime suspects of contamination.
The constant outbreak of food-borne infections at various restaurant locations contributed to customers losing confidence in the Chipotle brand. For instance, in October 2015, 55 customers at 11 Chipotle restaurants, mainly in the Seattle, Oregon, Washington, and Portland regions, contracted the food-borne illness (Thompson, 2018). Health officials linked the infections to a strain of E. coli bacteria frequently linked to food contamination. This scenario leads to customers challenging the restaurant’s moral integrity and trustworthiness. The continuous opening and closing of the Chipotle restaurant chains indicated a failure to curb the gap of eradicating the issue, which deterred customers from returning.
I am confident that the current approach will increase customers’ trust as they start an initiative to improve food safety. The initiatives compose of food safety and quality assurance programs. D.N.A. – based testing of the cooking supplies before being delivered to the restaurant to assess their safety and quality (Thompson, 2018). Granting paid sick leave to staff minimizes the motivation for operating while sick. Improving the hygiene, product safety, and food handling procedures across all chain restaurants. Enhancing control procedures for food safety by using hazard analysis critical control point (HACCP) monitoring systems and working on a solution to ensure that the corporation complies with all relevant federal and provincial food safety requirements.
Taco Bell is one of the main competitors of Chipotle Mexican Grill in the fast-food industry. Taco Bell has recently overtaken Chipotle Mexican Grill in the eatery sector due to its improving meal quality and lower price and investing a lot in advertising its meal recipes resulting in an overall sales increase (Thompson, 2018). However, Chipotle’s industry-leading competitive strengths include customer acquisition and corporate governance. Chipotle’s customers’ acquisitions result from their high-quality food prepared from locally obtained supplies and the high demand for Mexican meals. Chipotle corporate governance has been acknowledged as crucial in generating investment and facilitating adequate market finance.
My suggestions for Chipotle are to reestablish customer confidence and recover its reputation as a trailblazer in the fast-food business by taking the issue personally and establishing the business goals. A sensible initial approach is to admit that the business messed up publicly, take accountability, and explain the strategy to safeguard customers moving forward. The next move is to inform consumers of updated policies and practices to protect them. A further critical aspect would lessen the chance of another instance of improper sanitation and demonstrate to clients the severity of the business treating this issue. It could not be simple for Chipotle to grasp what it implies to establish a culture of safety and quality assurance. Employees, procedure, conduct, and enthusiasm are the foundation of safety practices.
Chipotle has a strategy to restore its brand since it knows customers no longer trust it. In order to improve customer experiences, the business will concentrate on operational adjustments, digitalization, and restaurant upgrades. The primary operational adjustment is training and personnel management to enhance hospitality and the quality and speed of customer service. Reducing area manager numbers enables them to stay at every restaurant for an extended time. This would have an immediate and long-term influence on the restaurant staff. Chipotle might increase the speed upon which requests are processed by investing in digitalization as sales growth from online ordering increases. The business may decide to invest money in upgrading the furnishings to offer more appealing dining spaces, additional ordering alternatives, enhanced beverage presentations, and an enhanced wireless purchasing environment.
Reference
Thompson, A. (2018). Case 12 Chipotle Mexican Grill’s strategy in 2018: Will the new C.E.O. be able to rebuild customer trust and revive sales growth? 10627_293556925_Chipotle_Mexican_Grill_4225136475172755.pdf – Final PDF to printer CASE 12 Chipotle Mexican Grill’s Strategy in 2018: Will the New C.E.O. | Course Hero. Web.