Andy Naylor, who served as Tortilla’s UK CEO, has been appointed as the new CEO of the fast-casual Mexican chain.
He succeeds current CEO Richard Morris, who has dedicated the past decade to his role at Tortilla.
Naylor has partnered with Morris for the past seven years, initially serving as CFO. Over time, his role expanded to include business development responsibilities. He recently took up the role of UK CEO.
“The Tortilla brand has tremendous potential and I am excited to take on the role of CEO,” said Naylor.
“In recent years, the group has taken significant strides to expand our presence through our omnichannel business strategy and strengthen our foundation for continued profitable growth. I look forward to working with the team to accelerate this journey.”
Morris added: “After an incredible 10 years at Tortilla, I feel the time is right to step down and hand over the burrito baton to Andy and the team.
“It has been an extraordinary and exciting journey, bookended by major events such as Brexit, Covid, the development of both our franchise and delivery strategy and, of course, the IPO.
“The business has proven to be highly adaptable and continues to be a market leader in the fast-casual market. I leave behind a highly capable and inspiring board and an excellent management team, who are ready for Tortilla’s next phase of development. It has been a privilege to work with such a talented group, our loyal customers, suppliers and wider stakeholders, and I continue to cheerlead loudly from the sidelines.
Tortilla was founded in 2007 and currently has around 85 restaurants across the UK.
In the six months to 2/7/2023, the burrito brand made a pre-tax loss of £0.6m. However, despite this loss, turnover grew significantly, rising 22% to £32.7 million.
Earlier this month, Tortilla announced its decision to end its delivery partnership with Deliveroo. This change came in response to Deliveroo’s fees, which posed challenges to the company’s margins.
Tortilla’s expansion strategy this year prioritizes opening restaurants in tourist centers. The company has already launched five venues in partnership with SSP since 2019, including venues at Manchester Piccadilly and London Euston stations. In addition, Tortilla plans to open four more restaurants in these locations during the current year.
