CHIPOTLE ANNOUNCES LEADERSHIP TRANSITIONS
Rhea-AI Summary
Chipotle (NYSE: CMG) announced leadership changes effective Jan. 12, 2026: Ilene Eskenazi, previously Chief Human Resources Officer, was appointed Chief Legal and Human Resources Officer, succeeding Roger Theodoredis who transitioned out of the Chief Legal Officer and General Counsel role and will remain temporarily as an advisor. Stephanie Perdue, Vice President of Brand Marketing, was named Interim Chief Marketing Officer while the company conducts an internal and external search for a permanent CMO with an executive search firm. The company reaffirmed its full-year 2025 financial guidance and said it will discuss fourth-quarter and fiscal 2025 results on the Feb. 3, 2026 earnings call.
The announcement emphasizes continuity via internal promotions and temporary advisory roles during the transition.
Positive
- Internal promotion of Ilene Eskenazi preserves institutional knowledge in legal and HR
- Appointment of Stephanie Perdue as interim CMO maintains marketing leadership continuity
- Company reaffirmed full-year 2025 guidance, reducing near-term forecast uncertainty
Negative
- Chief Legal Officer and Chief Brand Officer transitioned out, creating senior leadership turnover
- Ongoing external search for a permanent CMO introduces near-term strategic uncertainty
News Market Reaction
On the day this news was published, CMG declined 2.31%, reflecting a moderate negative market reaction.
Data tracked by StockTitan Argus on the day of publication.
CHIPOTLE EXECUTIVE ILENE ESKENAZI APPOINTED CHIEF LEGAL AND HUMAN RESOURCES OFFICER
STEPHANIE PERDUE, VICE PRESIDENT OF BRAND MARKETING, APPOINTED INTERIM CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER
REAFFIRMS FULL YEAR 2025 GUIDANCE
The Company has initiated an internal and external search to identify a new CMO with the assistance of a leading executive search firm.
Ms. Eskenazi is an accomplished chief legal and human resources executive with extensive experience overseeing a broad range of legal and compliance matters, as well as talent management, and compensation and benefits. Prior to joining Chipotle in 2023 as CHRO, she held joint roles at leading consumer products companies, including Petco Health and Wellness Company, Boardriders, Inc. (previously Quiksilver, Inc.), and Red Bull North America, Inc. She previously served as a corporate attorney at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP.
"Ilene is a valued member of our executive leadership team, and her perspective has been instrumental over the years," said Scott Boatwright, Chipotle's Chief Executive Officer. "I look forward to continuing to collaborate with Ilene and our exceptional team as we hire top talent and invest in our people to deliver on our growth strategy and take Chipotle to the next level."
Boatwright added, "Chipotle has a deep bench of marketing talent, and we are fortunate to have Stephanie take on the interim role overseeing our strategic marketing initiatives, customer engagement and incredible brand loyalty as we conduct a comprehensive search for our next CMO.
"I would like to thank Roger and Chris for their leadership and many contributions throughout their time at Chipotle. Roger has been a trusted advisor to our leadership team and Board of Directors, while Chris has been instrumental in helping Chipotle become a purpose-driven lifestyle brand, making it more visible, accessible and culturally relevant with consumers.
Boatwright concluded, "As we move forward, our focus remains on the disciplined execution of our core strategies. We are reaffirming our full-year 2025 financial guidance that was issued in October and remain confident in our 2026 strategic plan. We will have more to share on our fourth quarter and fiscal year 2025 earnings call on February 3, 2026."
About Chipotle
Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE: CMG) is cultivating a better world by serving responsibly sourced, classically-cooked, real food with wholesome ingredients without artificial colors, flavors or preservatives. There are over 3,900 restaurants as of September 30, 2025 in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and the Middle East and it is the only restaurant company of its size that owns and operates all its restaurants in North America and Europe. With over 130,000 employees passionate about providing a great guest experience, Chipotle is a longtime leader and innovator in the food industry. Chipotle is committed to making its food more accessible to everyone while continuing to be a brand with a demonstrated purpose as it leads the way in digital, technology and sustainable business practices. For more information or to place an order online, visit CHIPOTLE.COM.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking statements as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements about our anticipated full year 2025 financial guidance. We use words such as "anticipate", "believe", "could", "should", "may", "approximately", "estimate", "assuming", "expect", "intend", "project", "target", "goal" and similar terms and phrases, including references to assumptions, to identify forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements in this press release are based on currently available operating, financial and competitive information available to us as of the date of this release and we assume no obligation to update these forward-looking statements. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the statements, including but not limited to: increasing wage inflation including as a result of government regulations mandating higher minimum wages, and the competitive labor market, which impacts our ability to attract and retain qualified employees and has resulted in occasional staffing shortages; the impact of any union organizing efforts and our responses to such efforts; increases in food, beverage, packaging and other operating costs and the inability of our third-party suppliers and business partners to fulfill their commitments due to inflation, global conflicts, climate change, our Food with Integrity philosophy, tariffs or trade restrictions and supply shortages; risks of food safety incidents and food-borne illnesses; risks associated with our reliance on certain information technology systems operated by us or by third parties and potential failures, outages or interruptions; privacy and cybersecurity risks, including risk of breaches, unauthorized access, theft, modification, destruction or ransom of guest or employee personal or confidential information stored on our network or the network of third-party providers; the impact of competition, including from sources outside the restaurant industry; the impact of government regulations relating to our employees, employment practices, restaurant design and construction, and the sale of food or alcoholic beverages; our ability to achieve our planned growth, such as the costs and availability of suitable new restaurant sites and the equipment and technology needed to fully outfit new restaurants, construction materials and contractors and the expected costs to accelerate our international expansion through partner-operated restaurants in the
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SOURCE Chipotle Mexican Grill
FAQ
Who is the new Chief Legal and Human Resources Officer at Chipotle (CMG) as of Jan. 12, 2026?
Why is Stephanie Perdue serving as interim CMO at Chipotle (CMG)?
Did Chipotle (CMG) change its full-year 2025 financial guidance on Jan. 12, 2026?
When will Chipotle (CMG) discuss fourth-quarter and fiscal 2025 results?
Will the departing executives remain with Chipotle (CMG) after Jan. 12, 2026?
