Chipotle Mexican Grill made its restaurant debut in Asia on Sept. 2, opening its first location in the city of Seoul, South Korea.
“South Korea, in particular, is an ideal market to introduce Chipotle to the region, and we see tremendous potential to grow from here,” Chief Executive Scott Boatwright said in a statement.
The Newport Beach-based company has partnered with operator Sangmidang Holdings to expand the business in South Korea via a joint venture called S&C Restaurants Holdings.
S&C aims to open two more South Korean locations by the end of 2026 as well as Chipotle’s first restaurant in Singapore in 2027.
Chipotle counts over 4,200 restaurants in total as of June. Shares were up 2.1% to $38.31 apiece with a market cap of $48 billion during midday trading (NYSE: CMG).