Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG) is closing all 15 locations of its ShopHouse Asian Kitchen chain, Nation’s Restaurant News reported.
The company has inked a deal to sell the leases for the ShopHouse locations, the company’s spokesman Chris Arnold told Nation’s Restaurant News.
The closure will become effective from March 17.
“We now have a deal in place to sell the ShopHouse leases and believe that is the right decision at this time,” Arnold told Nation’s Restaurant News in an emailed statement.
The spokesman said that ShopHouse employees will be offered jobs at Chipotle.
The first ShopHouse location was opened in 2011. Chipotle was able to grow the fast Asian brand to 15 locations.
Last year, the company announced that it was exploring strategic alternatives for the ShopHouse concept.
Chipotle Looking to Open 195-210 New Restaurants in 2017
Last month, Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG) reported financial results for its fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2016.
The company posted fourth-quarter income of $16.0 million, or $0.55 per share, significantly down from $67.9 million, or $2.17 per share, in the same quarter of 2015.
However, revenue for the quarter grew 3.7% year-over-year. The increase was driven by new restaurant openings, the company said.
On a full-year basis, Chipotle reported net income of $22.9 million, or $0.77 per share, compared to income of $475.6 million, or $15.10 per share, for the prior year.
Revenue for 2016 was $3.9 billion, down 13.3% from the prior year. The decrease in revenue was driven by a 20.4% decrease in comparable restaurant sales, partially offset by revenue from new restaurants, the company said.
During the full year 2016, Chipotle opened 240 new restaurants, bringing the total restaurant number to 2250. In 2017, the company is targeting to 195-210 new restaurants openings.
“In the upcoming year [2017] we intend to continue to simplify and improve our restaurant operations, utilize creative marketing to rebuild our brand, and further the roll-out of our digital sales efforts. All three of these strategic initiatives are centered on improving the guest experience and restoring customer affinity for the Chipotle brand,” Chipotle Founder and CEO Steve Ells said in the fourth quarter earnings release.