“Chipotle has dominated and changed the fast-casual Mexican dining experience in America” (Oyedele, 2017, para. 1). Chipotle has separated from its competitors by providing a unique taste. The combination of marketing fresh and quick quality food has increased the competition. Numerous fast food and casual restaurants are imitating Chipotles niche. Fast Casual restaurants focus on quality food and more affordable than full service restaurants (Oyedele, 2017).
To better understand Chipotle’s success, we need to analyze the major competitors. According to Hitt, Ireland & Huskisson, “Competitor Analysis should identify competitors’ current strategies, strategic intent, strategic mission, capabilities, core competencies and a competitive response profile” (2013).
Panera Bread “Chipotle’s largest rival is a company formed in 1998 named Panera Bread” (Hitt, Ireland & Huskisson, 2013, p. 75). More than 87% of Chipotle restaurants have a Panera within ten-minute drive. Panera currently operates 1,453 locations in 40 states. The mentality of
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78). Creating unique taste while providing healthy food options has been difficult for competitors to imitate. Simple menu, effective serving line, unique better tasting food and reasonable pricing are the few ideas supporting the mission statement. “Chipotle’s menu allows for over 60,000 different burrito combinations has produced annual revenues of almost $2 billion in 2010” (Hitt, Ireland & Huskisson, 2013, p. 71). Chipotle uses a focused differentiation strategy to target a narrow market. The target customers are anyone looking for quality food and willing to pay slightly higher prices. As mentioned earlier the niche of fast casual restaurants has increased competition. What really sets Chipotle apart is the vision of sourcing the best ingredients and changing the image of fast food joints (Hitt, Ireland & Huskisson,