Dive Brief:
- Qdoba will open its first two standalone restaurants in Arizona this month, the brand said Tuesday. The Mexican fast casual chain intends to open as many as 10 restaurants in the state in the next two years.
- The forthcoming Scottsdale and Phoenix stores join on-campus locations at Grand Canyon University and Arizona State University, according to the press release.
- The franchised brand is in the middle of a push to speed up its unit development as franchised fast casual Mexican brands take on segment behemoth Chipotle’s company-operated store system.
Dive Insight:
Qdoba is looking to double its roughly 800-unit system in the next decade. To that end, the chain has offered a $100,000 cash bonus to new and existing franchisees who open additional units by 2026. That incentive is made enticing by the pace of Qdoba’s development — inline and endcap units typically take 12 to 15 months to complete, Jeremy Vitaro, Qdoba’s chief development officer, told Restaurant Dive in a previous interview.
The Arizona restaurants incorporate experiential elements like an open grill in a prominent location, described by Qdoba as a “theater,” and two production lines to accommodate anticipated demand. The stores have an interior space of about 2,000 square feet, in keeping with Qdoba’s effort to shrink the size of its new builds. The brand’s legacy stores tend to be about 2,500 square feet.
Qdoba’s growth is in keeping with both regional trends and national fast casual growth. Vitaro said the Phoenix metro area is a particular target. Maricopa County, Arizona, which encompasses Phoenix and Scottsdale, has added about 760,000 residents since 2010, according to the Census Bureau.
Other chains are also looking to take advantage of this growing market. Bojangles recently signed a 20-store agreement to come to the metro area, for example. Huey Magoo’s, a fast casual chain with over 40 units, plans to open 12 locations in Maricopa County as well. Sweetgreen has signed two leases for stores in Phoenix and Scottsdale.
Outside of the demographic opportunities in the Southwest, fast casual chains have had a decent 2024, with brands like Shake Shack, Wingstop, Chipotle and Cava all seeing significant unit count growth. Traditional QSRs and casual dining brands have had a more mixed record this year, with brands ranging from Pizza Hut to Denny’s closing numerous stores.
