Give Chipotle Same Respect as Apple

Steve Jobs, meet Steve Ells. Both men founded companies that have revolutionized American culture: Chipotle is doing for fast food what Apple did for technology, writes Matthew Yglesias at Slate. First of all, "Chipotle’s growth since its 2006 IPO should be seen as a great American success story," especially in such a difficult economic climate. The firm added 67 new stores in the fourth quarter of last year alone, and its stock has soared 500% in five years.

Its success can be chalked up to Apple-like innovation—indeed, "the Chipotle burrito is very similar to the iPhone," Yglesias writes. Both products take what's good about their industries and improve upon it; for that, customers will shell out a little more. We tend to forget about food when we discuss American advances. "But premium fast food is a bona fide boom market despite an adverse macroeconomic climate," Yglesias writes. And given that we'll always need to eat, "faster and better food is a great strategy for winning the future." Click for the full column. (More Chipotle stories.)