Chipotle Mexican Grill is rolling out two short-term back-to-school promotions, starting with a School Spirit BOGO on Aug. 20 and followed by three consecutive weeks of Chipotle Sundays dinner deals beginning Aug. 23. The offers give guests a quick way to save, but the strongest discount comes with tight rules on time, location and what a customer has to wear.
On Thursday, guests in school apparel or accessories can buy an entrée at participating Chipotle restaurants in the U.S. after 3 p.m. local time and get a second entrée free. The promotion is limited to in-restaurant orders only, cannot be used for catering, mobile, online or delivery orders, and is capped at five free entrées per check, with each free item requiring the purchase of an entrée of equal or greater value.
Stephanie Perdue framed the move around the start of the school year, saying back-to-school season is about school spirit and the routines that make the week feel a little easier. She said the company wants to meet guests with real food and great value, whether they are repping their school or resetting with Chipotle on a Sunday.
The second offer widens the audience but keeps a similar set of restrictions. Starting Sunday, guests in the U.S. and Canada who order two or more entrées after 3 p.m. local time on the Chipotle app, Chipotle.com or Chipotle.ca can get one free entrée with code SUNDAYS. The terms run on Aug. 23, Aug. 30 and Sept. 6, and the deal applies only to same-day digital orders placed at participating Chipotle restaurants.
That split matters because the promotion is being sold as broad back-to-school value while the best-known piece only works if a customer shows up in the right clothes, at the right time and at the right store. Even the Sunday offer, which is easier to use, still requires a promo code, a minimum purchase and a digital order after 3 p.m., leaving little room for anyone hoping to claim the deal casually.
Chipotle is also tying the push to its rewards program, offering 1,000 bonus points for members who sign up for Chipotle U Rewards and 20% more points with every purchase. College students enrolled in Chipotle Rewards can validate through ID.me at Chipotle.com/chipotle-u-rewards, a sign the company is using the same seasonal window to chase both traffic and loyalty sign-ups.
For customers, the next dates are fixed: Aug. 20 for the School Spirit BOGO and Aug. 23 for the first Chipotle Sundays deal. After that, the value run continues for two more Sundays, but only if shoppers remember the code, the cutoff time and the fine print that determines whether the free entrée actually lands on the check.
