Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. is offering “Happy Four Hours” in select states in the Midwest, with half-off adult beverages during August and September.
The promotion is the latest in the chain’s ongoing effort to win customers back after a series of foodborne illness outbreaks last year sent traffic plummeting.
Lasting from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m., the Happy Four Hours offer is available in Chicago, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio and Wisconsin.
The offers vary in each region. In Nebraska, for example, customers can get two margaritas or beers for the price of one, but in Kansas the deal is half-off all alcoholic drinks.
In a report Thursday, analyst Mark Kalinowski of Nomura Securities International Inc., said: “We see the potential for it to be offered in other parts of the U.S. and perhaps throughout more of the year,” if proven to be a success.
Chipotle’s second-quarter same-store sales dropped 23.6 percent, an improvement from the first quarter, but indicating a slower than expected recovery.
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