Chipotle reports like-for-likes up 11%, shifts property strategy to drive-thrus: Chipotle has reported like-for-like sales rose 11% in its Third Quarter, with total sales up 14.6% to $1.4bn. It opened 25 sites and closed one. Digital sales grew 87.9% and accounted for 18.3% of sales in the quarter. “We’re pleased with our overall results in the quarter, which reflects further progress on our key strategic initiatives to provide a great guest experience and position Chipotle to deliver above industry growth for many years to come,” said chief executive Brian Niccol. “These strong results reinforce that running great restaurants with a purpose of cultivating a better world is a compelling proposition.” The company added: “We opened 25 new restaurants during the quarter including one relocation, and closed one restaurant, bringing the total restaurant count to 2,546. Based on the early success of Chipotlanes, we shifted our real estate strategy to seek more sites that can accommodate a Chipotlane. As a result, of the more than 80 restaurants currently under construction, about half of them will have a Chipotlane, which will result in a total of about 60 Chipotlanes by the end of 2019.”

Steve Easterbrook – delivery will be worth $4bn in sales to McDonald’s this year: McDonald’s chief executive Steve Easterbrook has reported delivery will be worth $4bn in sales for the company this year. He stated: “For 2019, we expect delivery to drive $4 billion or roughly 4% of global system wide sales. That’s up from $1 billion just three years ago. And it’s now available from about 23,000 restaurants in over 80 countries. Of note our McDelivery global average check remain steady at two times the average restaurant check. Year-over-year, we continue to see double digit or higher McDelivery comp sales increases across many of our major markets. In the US, we saw an increase in average restaurant McDelivery orders in the restaurants where we recently introduced DoorDash as an additional delivery partner. This result is consistent with our experience in other markets. The addition of multiple delivery partners in markets such as Italy, Canada, Russia, and Spain help these markets reach new customer pools by appealing to customers primarily loyal to other apps, and expanding coverage to geographies where existing partners may not have had a presence.”

Easyhotel wins planning go-ahead at Charles de Gaulle airport, signs franchisees in Derby and Tel Aviv: Easyhotel has won planning permission for the development of a 209-room Easyhotel at Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport. The company stated: “The group has secured an operating lease agreement with Groupe ADP (developer and manager of airports worldwide, including the three main airports in the Paris region). The hotel will be let on a 24-year FRI (fully repairing and insuring) lease at an annual rent of approximately €1.1 million. The site is being developed by Linkcity Ile de France (a subsidiary of Bouygues Construction) and construction works will now begin imminently with the new hotel anticipated to open during the 2020/21 financial year. The group is (also) pleased to confirm that it has signed a franchise agreement with Ushba for the development of a new 110-room hotel in Derby. Located close to the city centre and main transport hubs of the city, the hotel is expected to open in 2021. The group has also signed a 20-year exclusive franchise agreement with R&N Services Ltd to support the brand’s development in Tel Aviv, Israel. The agreement includes the development of three initial hotels in prime locations across the city, totalling 667 rooms. The hotels are expected to open by late 2022.” Guy Parsons, chief executive of Easyhotel, said: “I am pleased to report further progress against our strategy as we continue to expand our network of super budget hotels in city-centre locations, both in the UK and across international markets. The board believes that the current economic uncertainties will continue to present attractive investment opportunities for the brand and we look forward to announcing further updates in due course.”

Heineken reports Third Quarter volume up: Heineken has reported beer volume grew 2.3% organically in its Third Quarter with double digit growth in Asia Pacific. Volume of Heineken itself was up +7.4% with double digit growth in Africa, Middle East and Eastern Europe and the Americas. In the UK, total volume grew slightly. Beer volume grew mid-single digit. The premium beer portfolio grew high-single digit led by Heineken and Birra Moretti. Jean-François van Boxmeer, chairman of the executive board and chief executive, said: “During the third quarter, our beer portfolio delivered solid volume growth of 2.3% in the context of a challenging comparison base given a very good summer last year. The growth of Heineken accelerated to 7.4%. We are seeing increased volatility across a number of our markets, which we assume to continue for the rest of the year. We continue to invest for the long term benefit of all our stakeholders. We expect to grow operating profit organically around 4%.”