Chipotle Picks Taco Bell CEO Brian Niccol to Be Its New Chief
February 13 2018 - 4:59PM
Dow Jones News
By Julie Jargon
Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. on Tuesday will name Taco Bell CEO
Brian Niccol its next chief executive, tapping a fast-food veteran
to try to revive the struggling burrito chain.
Mr. Niccol, 43 years old, has run Taco Bell for three years as
the chain has been the most successful in the portfolio of Yum
Brands Inc., which also owns Pizza Hut and KFC. He will succeed
Chipotle founder Steve Ells on March 5.
Mr. Ells said last year that he would step down as chief
executive and become executive chairman to allow an outsider to
address Chipotle's struggles with food-safety problems and a
decline in customer visits. Mr. Ells said Mr. Niccol's "expertise
in digital technologies, restaurant operations and branding make
him a perfect fit for Chipotle."
Chipotle has struggled to lure back diners after food-safety
scares began in 2015, including outbreaks of E. coli, salmonella
and norovirus. The chain's problems attracted the attention of
activist shareholder William Ackman, who negotiated to fill two
seats on Chipotle's board.
Despite introducing food giveaways, a loyalty program and new
menu items like chorizo sausage and queso dip, many customers have
stayed away. Chipotle executives have acknowledged neglecting basic
operational details, like keeping restaurants clean and up-to-date,
while they focused on food safety. Chipotle shares have lost nearly
40% of their value in the past year.
"Other companies were working on doing a better job to close the
gap between them and Chipotle through value offerings and improved
quality," said Deutsche Bank analyst Brett Levy.
Mr. Niccol must also get along with Mr. Ells, who has been
described by people who know him as a hands-on leader and a
perfectionist. "I fully intend to have the new CEO be in charge,"
Mr. Ells had said when Chipotle reported earnings earlier this
month.
Mr. Niccol has experience turning around a brand with perception
problems regarding quality. He helped revive Taco Bell's image and
financial performance after a disgruntled customer filed a lawsuit
in 2011 alleging that its taco mixture was more filler than beef.
The suit was withdrawn, but the publicity hurt Taco Bell's
reputation and sales.
As marketing and innovation chief of Taco Bell at the time, Mr.
Niccol repositioned the chain as a youthful lifestyle brand. The
company hired interns to handle the brand's Twitter and Pinterest
accounts, circulated a petition to create a taco emoji, created a
taco lens on Snapchat and developed an ad showcasing photos of
people posting Taco Bell food on Instagram.
Mr. Niccol aims to draw on that work at Chipotle, using social
media to make the brand more youthful and culturally relevant,
according to a person familiar with the matter.
Mr. Niccol is also known at Taco Bell for welcoming ideas from
employees, including its restaurant workers. During a visit to a
Taco Bell, he noticed employees using tortillas to make miniature
wraps, which became the inspiration for Taco Bell's crunchwrap
sliders, he has told investors.
Also under Mr. Niccol's watch, Taco Bell introduced breakfast,
mobile ordering and payment, and hit products like Doritos Locos
Tacos, Quesalupas and Nacho fries. Taco Bell also opened "Cantina"
restaurants in urban markets to compete directly for Chipotle
customers with open kitchens serving small bites and alcoholic
beverages.
Some of those ideas earned him a reputation as a risk taker.
That could help Chipotle win back the 75% of former Chipotle
customers who now favor other fast-food brands, according to
investment firm Cowen & Co.
In monthly surveys of 2,500 consumers, Cowen has found that
ratings of Chipotle's food quality and trustworthiness have fallen
since 2015.
One customer, George Nenni, who is a digital marketing
consultant for retail automotive dealers in Middletown, Ohio, ate
at Chipotle twice a month before the chain's food safety problems.
Now he visits about once every two months.
Mr. Nenni, 52, said he can find healthier options elsewhere,
including at the fast food chains he frequents a few times a week.
He said those restaurants are also more consistent than Chipotle.
Sometimes, he said, Chipotle guacamole is so overwhipped it
resembles green mayonnaise, the barbacoa meat is too fatty or the
burritos are too stuffed for his liking.
"It's just really inconsistent," he said.
Write to Julie Jargon at julie.jargon@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
February 13, 2018 16:44 ET (21:44 GMT)
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