Shake Shack CEO Says Drive-Thru Wait Times Are Too Long

As of Q2 2024, Shake Shack had expanded to 30 to 35 drive-thrus, but CEO Rob Lynch noted during an earnings call that the service was twice as slow as it ought to be.

Restaurant Dive reports that according to Lynch, the fast-casual chain’s customers were mostly dine-in and focused on urban locations in the past, so speed of service wasn’t always a top priority.

“Speed of service is always something we kind of talk about, but hasn’t necessarily been a religion,” he said on the call. “It’s kind of fallen secondary to some of the innovations that we can deliver. And some of the way we make our products is more important.”

However, Lynch said that speed becomes more crucial when the business expands from being mostly in metropolitan regions like New York City, where customers are accustomed to standing in line, to markets like Ohio, Georgia, and Texas where it competes with other brands.

“Speed becomes something that is part of the overall guest experience and is a big part of that, especially as you move into more drive-thru formats,” the Shake Shack CEO continued. “As we move forward, we’re going to start making some strategic decisions on how we operate, the equipment we use, how we think about the kitchen in regards to making sure that we’re delivering better speed.”

Drive-thru combos and other items on the menu that can be applied on a large scale could be one approach to increase service speed, according to Lynch. In the back of the house, there’s also a chance to switch to a more assembly-line style of operation. Worker stations have become more central to production, with orders converging in an expo line.

“Given the current speed, I think, there has been a hesitancy because we haven’t seen the returns on the drive-thrus yet, because they haven’t driven a lot of incremental throughput,” the Shake Shack CEO said. “That’s going to change.”

According to Lynch, Shake Shack has also been aiming to lower expenses by 10% this year and even more by 2025 for new constructions. This might be especially useful as drive-thrus continue to be constructed, as they are typically among the most expensive formats and take longer to build.