Seeking spicemakers
Last week Chipotle announced it was looking to hire 15,000 new employees in the next few months, as the fast-Mexican restaurant looks to beef up its workforce ahead of what it calls “burrito season” — its busiest period of the year, running from March to May.
Chipotle may struggle to fill its open positions, as hiring remains difficult across the industry. Taco Bell has more than 25,000 open roles advertised on its site, Starbucks has more than 10,000 and employment in the restaurant industry as a whole remains down nearly 4% on pre-pandemic levels. Indeed, a November survey of the National Restaurant Association found that 62% of restaurant operators said they didn't have enough employees to meet customer demand, as potential employees shirk the sector.
Although Chipotle’s hiring spree is likely only temporary, the company is still in growth mode. Company execs are planning to open another 285 new restaurants this year — nearly one-per-day — as they look to topple Taco Bell, the country’s largest Mexican-inspired food chain. But, apart from obviously different menus and focus, Taco Bell and Chipotle also have incredibly different business models.
Taco Bell is run like a traditional franchise. Owned by fast food giant Yum! Brands, which also owns KFC and Pizza Hut, just 7% of the Taco Bell locations in the US are run by the company itself, with the rest franchised out to independent operators. That’s a pretty standard model employed by many of the major chains, including McDonalds, Subway and Domino’s. Chipotle does things differently, owning and operating all of their stores — giving them closer control of each restaurant.
