"The first month was rough" says Liz, wincing as she remembers the three months of Chiptopia. Chiptopia is Chipotle's newest customer rewards program, and with the help of my friends Liz, Sam, Haylee (and Haylee's mom) we had all committed to eating Chipotle twelve times a month, for three months with the goal of winning a party. The Chiptopia experience had its rough spots, but was worth it in the end.
Entering Chiptopia
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The journey started when Haylee called Sam to tell her that we were going to work together to win a Chipotle party. Hayley had seen advertisements in Chipotle for "Chiptopia," a rewards program in which customers can earn "mild," "medium," or "hot" status.
Mild status requires four visits a month, eight for medium, and 12 for hot. After three months, mild status customers are rewarded with a free entree, medium gets $20 of merchandise, and hot earns catering for twenty of your most deserving friends.
The Long Road to Success
The group decided to divide the Chiptopia work by assigning three-day windows to each of them in which they HAD to get Chipotle. If they failed in those three days, they had to get Chipotle twice the next three days. The system worked pretty effectively, but not without any hiccups.
Holy Guacamole
Each month of Chiptopia offered its own challenges. Liz ended up eating a uncomfortable amount of Mexican food during month one because the cashier forgot (twice!) to scan the form giving her credit for her visit. At one point, Sam was going on vacation during one of her three days and had a ton of work to get done the days before. It was a stressful situation, but Sam came through.
Near the end, everyone was sick and tired of cheese, guac, and beans. Liz was given responsibility for the all-important last visit, and the tension in the air those last three days was high. You'll be glad to hear that Liz didn't fail her friends. Despite the fact that Chipotle was not appetizing in the slightest those last days, Liz made the trip and wisely saved the burrito bowl for later.
Party Time
The promised Chiptopia party hasn't happened yet, mostly because we live in the dorms and twenty people don't exactly fit comfortably in a room only slightly bigger than a walk-in closet. We haven't really bothered to check if and when the catering prize expires, but after the trials and tribulations my friends went to earn their reward, I'd be seriously peeved if Chipotle took this away from them.
In the end, it's probably a good thing that there hasn't been a Chipotle party yet. I think Liz, Sam, and Haylee need a while to recover from their three-month burrito fest.