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Two well-known consumer companies spent 2026 doing something more interesting than defending their home turf. Both went looking for customers in international places they had never served, and both did it through partners rather than just doing it alone. That structural choice is what makes them worth a five-year commitment, in my opinion.
Image source: Getty Images. Chipotle finally cracked Asia, and it did not do it alone Chipotle Mexican Grill ( CMG +0.19% ) opened its first restaurant in Asia on Sept. 2 in Seoul's Gangnam district, operated through a joint venture with local operator Sangmidang Holdings. A joint venture essentially means the two companies co-own the business and share the risk.
Two more Korean locations are planned by the end of this year, with Singapore following in 2027. In July, the company also entered Mexico for the first time, partnering with Latin American operator Alsea in Monterrey, with Mexico City planned for 2027. What I find notable is the pattern.
Chipotle operates restaurants, including "more than 80 locations in Canada, 20 in the U.K., six in France, and two in Germany," according to the company. New markets rely on local partners who already understand the real estate, suppliers, and labor landscape. Management sees South Korea as a "reference market" or as a template it can use to expand across Asia.
I think Chipotle has entered a tier of American food chains that international consumers increasingly see as something worth trying. If its international playbook works, overseas restaurants could eventually become a meaningful part of the business. I could see Chipotle locations popping up around the world as that category of American fast food becomes less distinctly Western and more global.
The bigger opportunity may not just be opening restaurants overseas but turning Chipotle into a globally recognized food brand . Domestically, Chipotle's April relaunch of its rewards was aimed at a real problem. The company has been experiencing softer same-store sales, according to Marketing Dive, as its core customers become more cautious about spending.
It extended point expiration from six months to a year, brought back free monthly food drops, and added a cheaper redemption option. With 21 million active members, there is a big customer base to win back. Still, weak domestic traffic is what has weighed on the stock , and international expansion is unlikely to matter much to the numbers for years, given how much larger the U.S. business is.
Keep an eye on international expansion with this ticker; if it goes well, you could see some monster moves from the stock. Premium Feature Moneyball Superscore 73 /100 Today's Change ( 0.19 %) $ 0.07 Current Price $ 36.20 e.l.f. Beauty is about to test whether rhode travels e.l.f.
Beauty ( ELF +1.20% ) announced that rhode, the skincare brand founded by Hailey Rhode Bieber that it bought for $1 billion in 2025, launches at Sephora across 19 European countries on Sept. 30. That takes rhode from three countries to 22 in a single day. Here is why I think this matters more than a typical retail rollout.
Chief Executive Tarang Amin has said roughly 74% of rhode's social media followers already live outside the United States, while international drives only about 20% of its direct sales. That is a massive gap. The audience arrived before the product did, which means the expensive part of building demand in Europe is largely finished. e.l.f.
Beauty raised its fiscal 2027 sales outlook to 18% to 20% growth, from 12% to 14% previously. My logic here is similar to Chipotle's. There's already a huge following and customer base that could be waiting to walk into e.l.f Beauty-adjacent stores and try the product.
If the international expansion works, I think it could drive meaningful increases in sales and brand exposure and, ultimately, the stock price. So, my two cents: Buy Chipotle as a core position, since the international template is real and the domestic weakness is fixable. Treat e.l.f.
Beauty as the smaller, higher-risk half of the pair. Premium Feature Moneyball Superscore 80 /100 Today's Change ( 1.20 %) $ 1.15 Current Price $ 96.91
Source: The Motley Fool
