Chipotle adds ex-KFC division CEO Sabir Sami to board
Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (CMG) reported that its Board of Directors increased its size to 11 members and elected Sabir Sami as a director effective September 14, 2026.
Rhea-AI Filing Summary
Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (CMG) reported that its Board of Directors increased its size to 11 members and elected Sabir Sami as a director effective September 14, 2026. The Board determined that he is an independent director under New York Stock Exchange listing standards and did not appoint him to any Board committees.
Mr. Sami, age 59, brings more than 30 years of global consumer and restaurant industry experience, including 16 years at Yum! Brands, Inc., where he most recently served as Chief Executive Officer of the KFC Division from January 2022 to February 2025 and previously held senior roles across KFC, Taco Bell and Habit Burger & Grill. He will receive the same prorated compensation as other non‑employee directors through the next annual meeting of shareholders, with no related‑party arrangements or transactions disclosed.
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8-K Event Classification
2 items: 5.02, 9.01
2 items
Item 5.02
Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers
Governance
Key personnel changes including departures, elections, or appointments of directors and executive officers.
Item 9.01
Financial Statements and Exhibits
Exhibits
Financial statements, pro forma financial information, or exhibit attachments filed with this report.
Key Figures
Board size after change: 11 directors
Independent directors: 10 directors
Experience at Yum! Brands: 16 years
+4 more
7 metrics
Board size after change
11 directors
Board size increased when Sabir Sami was elected effective September 14, 2026
Independent directors
10 directors
Number of independent directors on Chipotle’s 11‑member Board after the change
Experience at Yum! Brands
16 years
Sabir Sami’s tenure at Yum! Brands, Inc.
KFC Division CEO tenure
January 2022 to February 2025
Period when Sabir Sami served as Chief Executive Officer of the KFC Division
Restaurants operated
Over 4,200 restaurants
Chipotle locations as of June 30, 2026, across multiple countries
Employees
Nearly 140,000 employees
Chipotle workforce as described in the company overview section
Age of new director
59 years
Age of Sabir Sami at the time of his election to the Board
Key Terms
independent director, Emerging growth company, Regulation S‑K, Inline XBRL, +1 more
5 terms
independent director regulatory
"The Board determined that Mr. Sami is an independent director within the meaning"
An independent director is a member of a company's board of directors who is not involved in the company's day-to-day operations and has no significant relationships with the company that could influence their judgment. Their role is to provide unbiased oversight and ensure the company is managed in the best interests of all shareholders. This helps build trust and confidence among investors by promoting transparency and accountability.
Emerging growth company regulatory
"Emerging growth company o Item 5.02 Departure of Directors or Certain Officers"
An emerging growth company is a recently public or smaller public firm that qualifies for temporary, lighter regulatory and disclosure rules to reduce the cost and effort of being public. For investors, it means the company may provide less historical financial detail and face fewer reporting requirements than larger firms, so it can grow more quickly but also carries higher uncertainty—like buying a promising early-stage product with fewer user reviews.
Regulation S‑K regulatory
"material interest that would be required to be reported under Item 404(a) of Regulation S‑K"
Regulation S-K is a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission rulebook that sets the required narrative disclosures companies must include in public filings, such as descriptions of the business, risk factors, management discussion, executive pay and legal matters. It matters to investors because it standardizes the non-numeric information companies must report, like a checklist that helps you compare businesses, spot risks and judge management’s strategy and track record.
Inline XBRL technical
"Cover Page Interactive Data File (embedded within the Inline XBRL document)"
Inline XBRL is a file format for financial filings that embeds machine-readable data tags directly inside the human-readable report, so the same document can be read by people and parsed by software. For investors it makes extracting, comparing and verifying financial numbers faster and more reliable—like a grocery list where each item also has a barcode—reducing manual errors and speeding up analysis.
Board refreshment other
"The board remains committed to ongoing refreshment and will continue to evaluate"
Board refreshment is the deliberate replacement or addition of corporate board members to bring new skills, perspectives or energy to a company’s oversight team. For investors, it matters because a refreshed board can change a company’s strategy, improve oversight of management and reduce risk—similar to updating the coaching staff of a sports team to fix weaknesses and boost future performance, which can influence investor confidence and the stock price.
FAQ
AI-generated questions and answers. How Rhea-AI works. Not financial advice.
What board change did Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG) announce on September 14, 2026?
Chipotle’s Board of Directors increased its size to 11 members and elected Sabir Sami as a director effective September 14, 2026. Following this change, the Board consists of 11 directors, 10 of whom are independent, according to the company’s disclosure.
Who is Sabir Sami, the new director at Chipotle (CMG)?
Sabir Sami, age 59, has more than 30 years of global consumer and restaurant industry experience, including 16 years at Yum! Brands. He most recently served as Chief Executive Officer of the KFC Division from January 2022 to February 2025 and previously held multiple senior leadership roles there.
Is Sabir Sami considered an independent director on Chipotle’s (CMG) board?
Yes. Chipotle’s Board determined that Sabir Sami is an independent director under the listing standards of the New York Stock Exchange. With his appointment, the Board is composed of 11 directors, of whom 10 are independent.
Will Sabir Sami serve on any Chipotle (CMG) board committees initially?
No. The Board did not appoint Sabir Sami to any Board committees at the time of his election. He will, however, receive director compensation consistent with other non‑employee directors, prorated from his appointment date until the next annual meeting of shareholders.
How will Sabir Sami be compensated as a director of Chipotle (CMG)?
Sabir Sami will receive compensation in the amounts and forms paid to other non‑employee directors, prorated for his service from September 14, 2026, until the next annual meeting of shareholders, as described in Chipotle’s Director Compensation Program and Stock Ownership Guidelines referenced in the filing.
What scale of operations does Chipotle (CMG) report in this disclosure?
Chipotle reports operating over 4,200 restaurants as of June 30, 2026, across the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and the Middle East, and notes having nearly 140,000 employees focused on delivering a strong guest experience.
AI-generated analysis. How Rhea-AI works. Not financial advice.
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): September 14, 2026
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation) | (Commission File Number) | (I.R.S. Employer Identification No.) | ||||||||||||
(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)
Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (949 ) 524-4000
Not Applicable
(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)
Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
| Title of each class | Trading Symbol(s) | Name of each exchange on which registered | ||||||
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (§230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (§240.12b-2 of this chapter).
Emerging growth company ☐
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. o
Item 5.02 Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers.
On September 14, 2026, the Board of Directors (the “Board”) of Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (“Chipotle”) increased the size of the Board to 11 directors and elected Sabir Sami as a director effective immediately. The Board determined that Mr. Sami is an independent director within the meaning of the listing standards of the New York Stock Exchange. The Board did not appoint Mr. Sami to any Board committees.
Mr. Sami, age 59, spent 16 years at Yum! Brands, Inc., a global company operating restaurants primarily under the concepts of KFC, Taco Bell, and Habit Burger & Grill (“Yum! Brands”) in a variety of senior leadership roles. He most recently served as Chief Executive Officer of the KFC Division from January 2022 to February 2025, where he reported directly to the Yum! Brands Chief Executive Officer. He previously served in a dual role as KFC Division Chief Operating Officer and Managing Director of KFC Asia from January 2020 to January 2022, a role in which he led the global operations team and drove the KFC global operations agenda while overseeing Thailand, India, Asia Central and Greater Asia. Mr. Sami joined Yum! Brands in 2009 and worked on all three brands during his tenure. Mr. Sami received his MBA from The University of Karachi in Pakistan. Mr. Sami is currently a director with Sami Advisory, a business consulting firm he founded in August 2025.
There are no arrangements or understandings between Mr. Sami and any other person pursuant to which he was elected as director. There are no family relationships between Mr. Sami and any director or executive officer of Chipotle, and there are no transactions in which Mr. Sami has or will have a direct or indirect material interest that would be required to be reported under Item 404(a) of Regulation S‑K.
Mr. Sami will receive compensation in the amounts and forms paid to other non-employee members of the Board (prorated for his service on the Board from the date of his appointment until the next annual meeting of shareholders), as described in Exhibit 10.11 (Director Compensation Program and Stock Ownership Guidelines) to Chipotle’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2025, which was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 4, 2026.
A copy of the press release announcing this election is attached hereto as an exhibit to this report.
Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits.
(d) Exhibits
| Exhibit Number | Exhibit Title or Description | |||||||
| 99.1 | Press Release, dated September 14, 2026 | |||||||
| 104 | Cover Page Interactive Data File (embedded within the Inline XBRL document) | |||||||
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
| Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. | ||||||||
| September 14, 2026 | By: | /s/ Ilene Eskenazi | ||||||
| Name: Ilene Eskenazi | ||||||||
| Title: Chief Legal and Human Resources Officer | ||||||||
Exhibit 99.1
 | NEWS Contact: Erin Wolford (949) 524-4035 MediaRelations@chipotle.com | ||||
CHIPOTLE APPOINTS SABIR SAMI TO ITS BOARD OF DIRECTORS
NEWPORT BEACH, Calif., September 14, 2026 – Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE: CMG) today announced a new addition to its board of directors, Sabir Sami, effective immediately.
Sabir Sami brings more than 30 years of global consumer and restaurant industry experience, including 16 years at Yum! Brands Inc., where he held a series of senior leadership roles across KFC, Taco Bell and Habit Burger & Grill. Most recently, Mr. Sami served as chief executive officer of KFC from January 2022 to February 2025, with global responsibility for the brand’s strategy and performance and reporting directly to the chief executive officer of Yum! Brands. Previously, he served as KFC’s chief operating officer and managing director of KFC Asia, leading the brand’s global operations team while overseeing markets across Thailand, India, Central Asia and Greater Asia. Mr. Sami also served as managing director of KFC’s Middle East, North Africa, Pakistan and Turkey markets. During his tenure at Yum! Brands, he held leadership roles across all three of the company’s brands, including serving as general manager of Yum! Canada and in general manager roles for KFC’s Canada and Turkey businesses. Before joining Yum! Brands in 2009, Mr. Sami held various leadership roles at Procter & Gamble, The Coca-Cola Co. and Reckitt Benckiser.
In addition to his role at Chipotle, Mr. Sami serves as a director of Sami Advisory, a business consulting firm he founded in August 2025. He also serves on the Board of Directors of Save the Children Canada. Mr. Sami holds an MBA from the University of Karachi in Pakistan.
“I’m thrilled to join Chipotle’s Board at such an exciting time for the company. With an iconic brand and global fanfare, Chipotle has an immense opportunity to bring its craveable menu to more guests around the world. I look forward to helping the company realize its significant potential.”
With the change announced today, Chipotle’s Board of Directors will be composed of 11 directors, 10 of whom are independent. Mr. Sami brings significant global restaurant industry and operational expertise to the board. The board remains committed to ongoing refreshment and will continue to evaluate highly qualified independent director candidates who bring relevant experience and perspectives aligned with Chipotle’s long-term strategy.
“Sabir brings deep restaurant operating expertise and a proven track record leading brands across international markets,” said Scott Maw, Chairman. “That experience will be invaluable as we scale Chipotle with intention, strengthen our operations and expand access to our brand around the world.”
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 4,200 restaurants as of June 30, 2026, 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 the United States, Canada and Europe. With nearly 140,000 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.