Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc (ARCO) 2023 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining our First Quarter 2023 Earnings Webcast. With us today are Marcelo Rabach, our Chief Executive Officer; Luis Raganato, our Chief Operating Officer; and Mariano Tannenbaum, our Chief Financial Officer. Today's webcast, which is being recorded will consist of prepared remarks from our leadership team, which will be accompanied by a slide presentation also available on the Investors section of our website www.arcosdorados.com/ir.

大家早上好，感謝您參加我們的 2023 年第一季度收益網絡廣播。今天和我們在一起的是我們的首席執行官 Marcelo Rabach； Luis Raganato，我們的首席運營官；和我們的首席財務官 Mariano Tannenbaum。正在錄製的今天的網絡廣播將包括我們領導團隊準備好的評論，並附有幻燈片演示，也可在我們網站 www.arcosdorados.com/ir 的投資者部分獲得。

As a reminder, to better view the presentation on the webcast platform, please scroll over the upper left-hand part of the screen and click on the arrows to maximize the slides. After we conclude our opening remarks, we will answer your questions, which you can submit using the chat function on the left-hand side of the screen. You will need to minimize the slides to access the chat function.

提醒一下，為了更好地觀看網絡直播平台上的演示文稿，請滾動屏幕的左上角並單擊箭頭以最大化幻燈片。在結束我們的開場白之後，我們將回答您的問題，您可以使用屏幕左側的聊天功能提交這些問題。您需要最小化幻燈片才能訪問聊天功能。

Today's call will contain forward-looking statements, and I refer you to the forward-looking statements section of our earnings release and recent filings with the SEC. We assume no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect new or changed events or circumstances. In addition to reporting financial results in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, we report certain non-GAAP financial results. Investors are encouraged to review the reconciliation of these non-GAAP financial results as compared with GAAP results, which can be found in the press release and unaudited financial statements filed today with the SEC on Form 6-K.

今天的電話會議將包含前瞻性陳述，請參閱我們的收益發布和最近向美國證券交易委員會提交的文件中的前瞻性陳述部分。我們不承擔更新或修改任何前瞻性陳述以反映新的或變化的事件或情況的義務。除了根據公認的會計原則報告財務結果外，我們還報告某些非 GAAP 財務結果。鼓勵投資者審查這些非 GAAP 財務結果與 GAAP 結果的對賬情況，這些結果可以在新聞稿和今天向美國證券交易委員會提交的 Form 6-K 未經審計的財務報表中找到。

Marcelo, over to you.

馬塞洛，交給你了。

Thank you, Dan. Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining us today. The McDonald's system has been generating consistently strong results around the world for the last couple of years. Arcos Dorados is no exception. This is a direct result of our long-term strategic approach to generating value for our shareholders. And we expect the structural competitive advantages of our restaurant portfolio and digital platform to continue to drive value creation for the foreseeable future.

謝謝你，丹。大家早上好，感謝您今天加入我們。在過去的幾年裡，麥當勞系統在全球範圍內產生了持續強勁的業績。 Arcos Dorados 也不例外。這是我們為股東創造價值的長期戰略方法的直接結果。我們預計我們的餐廳組合和數字平台的結構性競爭優勢將在可預見的未來繼續推動價值創造。

Our guests have spoken, there is no doubt we are operating the most beloved brand in the QSR industry in Latin America and the Caribbean. They recognize the value we offer in our restaurants on a daily basis and the positive impact we make in our communities every year. This is why restaurant volumes continue to grow, and brand trust metrics are at all-time highs.

我們的客人已經說過，毫無疑問，我們經營的是拉丁美洲和加勒比地區 QSR 行業中最受歡迎的品牌。他們認識到我們每天在餐廳中提供的價值以及我們每年對社區產生的積極影響。這就是餐廳數量持續增長以及品牌信任度指標處於歷史最高水平的原因。

Each time we open a restaurant, we bring McDonald's favorite menu items closer to our guests, while also creating new job opportunities for young people and investing in the economic development of local communities. We are operating in a vastly underpenetrated region for the QSR industry which represents a significant growth opportunity. Against that backdrop, we are working to support a sustainable future for our business and the communities we serve as we capture the substantial potential that lies ahead of us.

每次我們開一家餐廳，我們都會讓麥當勞最喜歡的菜單更接近我們的客人，同時也為年輕人創造新的就業機會，並投資於當地社區的經濟發展。我們在 QSR 行業的滲透率極低的地區開展業務，這代表著重要的增長機會。在此背景下，我們正在努力支持我們的業務和我們所服務的社區的可持續未來，因為我們抓住了擺在我們面前的巨大潛力。

This is the first year with no material COVID impact since the pandemic began and we are off to a strong start. Let's take a look at the consolidated results for the first quarter of 2023. Total revenue in the first quarter rose 25.3% in U.S. dollars versus the prior year, supported by double-digit guest traffic growth. Strong top line growth drove operating leverage and improved profitability.

這是自大流行開始以來沒有受到 COVID 重大影響的第一年，我們有了一個良好的開端。讓我們來看看 2023 年第一季度的綜合業績。在兩位數的客流量增長的支持下，第一季度總收入按美元計算同比增長 25.3%。強勁的收入增長推動了經營槓桿並提高了盈利能力。

Adjusted EBITDA was up 28% in the quarter, including modest margin expansion. Net income in the quarter also improved significantly, growing 52.7% versus last year. Systemwide comparable sales grew a robust 1.7x blended inflation across the company and at least 1.5x in each division. Market share trends remain positive as well. McDonald's brand (inaudible) share in the quarter was about 2 and 3.5x as big as that of our two closest competitors, respectively.

本季度調整後的 EBITDA 增長了 28%，其中包括適度的利潤率增長。該季度的淨收入也有顯著改善，與去年同期相比增長了 52.7%。整個公司的全系統可比銷售額增長了 1.7 倍的強勁混合通貨膨脹率，每個部門至少增長了 1.5 倍。市場份額趨勢也保持積極。麥當勞品牌（聽不清）在本季度的份額分別是我們兩個最接近的競爭對手的 2 倍和 3.5 倍。

The 3D strategy drove sales higher in the quarter. Total digital sales accounted for 47% of system-wide sales, with 18% identifiable sales across the business. This included strong performance in both the delivery and drive-through sales channels despite an acceleration of sales growth at the front counter. And our development plan is on track.

3D 策略推動了本季度的銷售額增長。數字銷售總額佔全系統銷售額的 47%，其中 18% 為可識別銷售額。這包括儘管前台銷售增長加速，但外賣和得來速銷售渠道的強勁表現。我們的發展計劃正在按計劃進行。

We opened eight freestanding restaurants in the quarter and expect the pace of openings to pick up as we move through the year with a higher number of openings in the second half of 2023. Mariano will talk more about that in a few minutes.

我們在本季度開設了 8 家獨立式餐廳，並預計隨著我們在 2023 年下半年新開餐廳數量的增加，這一年的開張速度將會加快。馬里亞諾將在幾分鐘內詳細討論這一點。

I turn it over to Luis now for an overview of sales performance in each division.

我現在將其轉交給 Luis，以了解每個部門的銷售業績概況。

Thanks, Marcelo, and good morning, everyone. System-wide comparable sales growth was drawn in all divisions in the first quarter. Brazil's comparable sales rose 2.6x inflation in the period. About 2/3 of the growth came from higher guest volumes as we maintained a competitive pricing strategy to support volume growth given the softer consumer environment in the country.

謝謝，馬塞洛，大家早上好。第一季度所有部門都得出了全系統可比銷售額增長。同期巴西的可比銷售額增長了 2.6 倍。大約 2/3 的增長來自更高的客流量，因為我們保持了具有競爭力的定價策略，以在該國消費環境疲軟的情況下支持客流量增長。

Digital sales accounted for 57% of total sales in Brazil, including 23%, identifiable sales which are users that provide their contact information and explicitly allow us to use it. Brazil's sponsorships of Big Brother Brazil among the most highly rated television programs in the country and Lollapalooza, one of its most popular music festivals connected the brand with younger consumers.

數字銷售額佔巴西總銷售額的 57%，其中 23% 是可識別銷售額，即提供聯繫信息並明確允許我們使用的用戶。巴西贊助了巴西收視率最高的電視節目“老大哥”，以及最受歡迎的音樂節之一 Lollapalooza，將品牌與年輕消費者聯繫起來。

New product launches included premium offerings in both the beef and chicken platforms and digital sales benefited from channel-specific campaigns in drive-thru. Early access to new products for app users and a Mcdelivery activation during Lollapalooza. Lolla's comparable sales grew 2.8x blended inflation in the quarter. Similar to Brazil, about 2/3 of NOLAD's comparable sales growth came from increased guest volumes. Mexico and the French West Indies were the strongest performers. Costa Rica, Panama and Puerto Rico also delivered solid top line growth in the quarter.

新產品發布包括牛肉和雞肉平台的優質產品，數字銷售受益於得來速的特定渠道活動。在 Lollapalooza 期間，應用程序用戶可以搶先體驗新產品並激活 Mcdelivery。本季度 Lolla 的可比銷售額增長了 2.8 倍的混合通脹率。與巴西類似，NOLAD 約 2/3 的可比銷售額增長來自客人數量的增加。墨西哥和法屬西印度群島表現最為強勁。哥斯達黎加、巴拿馬和波多黎各在本季度也實現了穩健的收入增長。

Marketing activities in NOLAD included the Big Mac chicken launch in Mexico and Costa Rica, leveraging an iconic product to expand the chicken platform. We continued the rollout of the best burger platform to Panama, capitalizing on best practices from the implementation in Costa Rica, Panama's comparable sales growth up 14% in the quarter.

NOLAD 的營銷活動包括在墨西哥和哥斯達黎加推出巨無霸炸雞，利用標誌性產品擴展炸雞平台。我們繼續向巴拿馬推出最佳漢堡平台，利用在哥斯達黎加實施的最佳實踐，巴拿馬本季度的可比銷售額增長了 14%。

As a reminder, Best Burger is a new quality standard for McDonald's classic burgers. It makes our burgers even better with small changes that add up to a big difference. Guests experienced hotter, juicier and tastier hamburgers. Results in these first markets demonstrated that this new standard helps drive even more robust sales growth. Comparable sales grew 1.5x inflation in SLAD in the first quarter, including mid-teens guest volume growth and strong inflation added average check growth. Performance was consistent across the division with all markets delivering strong volume and total revenue growth.

提醒一下，Best Burger 是麥當勞經典漢堡的新質量標準。它使我們的漢堡變得更好，微小的變化加起來就會有很大的不同。客人體驗了更熱、更多汁和更美味的漢堡包。這些第一批市場的結果表明，這一新標準有助於推動更強勁的銷售增長。第一季度 SLAD 的可比銷售額增長了 1.5 倍，其中包括十幾歲的客人數量增長和強勁的通貨膨脹增加了平均支票增長。整個部門的業績保持一致，所有市場都實現了強勁的銷量和總收入增長。

SLAD maintained strong sales growth momentum while reinforcing its leadership position in the QSR industry by reaching its highest value share on record. SLAD also reached its highest penetration of digital identified sales, growing 91% compared to the prior year quarter. The division brought out the McCrispy Chicken platform in Argentina and Chile, with strong consumer response in both markets.

SLAD 保持了強勁的銷售增長勢頭，同時通過達到創紀錄的最高價值份額鞏固了其在 QSR 行業的領導地位。 SLAD 的數字識別銷售滲透率也達到了最高水平，與去年同期相比增長了 91%。該部門在阿根廷和智利推出了 McCrispy Chicken 平台，消費者在這兩個市場反響強烈。

The launch of the Signature Turbo Taste platform strengthened the line of premium beef products in Chile, which helped fuel sales while reinforcing value for money perception. SLAD also connected with younger consumers with sponsorships of some of the most relevant music festivals in the region, Lollapalooza in Argentina and Chile and Estereo Picnic in Colombia.

Signature Turbo Taste 平台的推出加強了智利的優質牛肉產品線，這有助於推動銷售，同時增強物有所值的認知。 SLAD 還通過贊助該地區一些最相關的音樂節、阿根廷和智利的 Lollapalooza 以及哥倫比亞的 Estereo Picnic 與年輕消費者建立聯繫。

We have always enjoyed a significant competitive advantage from our freestanding restaurant portfolio. This is especially pronounced in challenging economic times when mall-based restaurants tend to suffer most. Lesson from the past also have us well positioned in terms of pricing that should support continued volume growth even in a softer economic impact.

我們的獨立餐廳組合一直享有顯著的競爭優勢。這在充滿挑戰的經濟時代尤其明顯，因為以購物中心為基地的餐廳往往受到的影響最大。過去的教訓也讓我們在定價方面處於有利地位，即使在經濟影響疲軟的情況下，也應該支持持續的銷量增長。

Over to Mariano, for a closer look at consolidated and divisional profitability in the quarter.

轉到馬里亞諾，仔細看看本季度的合併和部門盈利能力。

Thanks, Luis. Good morning, everyone. A compelling value proposition drives guest volume and top line growth above inflation, which then leads to operating leverage and improve profitability. With that, First quarter adjusted EBITDA grew 28% in U.S. dollars versus the prior year. It is worth remembering that the first quarter of 2022 was the easiest comparison we will face this year since it was the last period to include a material impact from COVID due to the Omicron strain of the virus. Adjusted EBITDA margin improved by 20 basis points versus the first quarter of last year. We generated efficiencies and operating leverage in payroll occupancy and other operating expenses and G&A. These were partly offset by higher food and paper costs as a percentage of revenue due to our pricing strategy and a tough comparison with the first quarter of last year. I should note that food and paper costs have been well controlled over the last 3-plus years despite supply chain disruptions and commodity price spikes in the period.

謝謝，路易斯。大家，早安。一個引人注目的價值主張推動客人數量和收入增長高於通貨膨脹，從而導致經營槓桿和提高盈利能力。因此，第一季度調整後的 EBITDA 以美元計算較上年增長 28%。值得記住的是，2022 年第一季度是我們今年將面臨的最簡單的比較，因為這是最後一個包含 COVID 因病毒 Omicron 毒株而產生的重大影響的時期。與去年第一季度相比，調整後的 EBITDA 利潤率提高了 20 個基點。我們在工資佔用和其他運營費用以及 G&A 方面產生了效率和運營槓桿。由於我們的定價策略以及與去年第一季度的艱難比較，食品和紙張成本佔收入的百分比較高，部分抵消了這些影響。我應該指出，儘管供應鏈中斷且大宗商品價格在此期間飆升，但食品和紙張成本在過去 3 年多的時間裡得到了很好的控制。

The first quarter 2023 margin also included the impact of the final step-up of our royalty rate. For the full year 2023, we expect food and paper costs to be relatively flat as a percentage of revenues versus 2022. Sustained sales growth will be the key driver of operating leverage needed to offset the impact of the higher royalty on our full year margins. And as has been the case for the last few years, we will prioritize sales as the main generator of adjusted EBITDA growth in U.S. dollars in 2023.

2023 年第一季度的利潤率還包括我們最終提高特許權使用費率的影響。對於 2023 年全年，我們預計食品和紙張成本佔收入的百分比與 2022 年相比將相對持平。持續的銷售增長將是抵消較高特許權使用費對我們全年利潤率的影響所需的經營槓桿的主要驅動力。與過去幾年的情況一樣，我們將優先考慮銷售作為 2023 年調整後 EBITDA 美元增長的主要動力。

During the first quarter, we kept with that priority. Adjusted EBITDA grew by double digits in all three divisions. Brazilian SLAD benefit from higher sales per restaurant, which is the main driver of operating leverage over fixed costs. This generated strong U.S. dollar growth in EBITDA as well as margin expansion in both divisions.

在第一季度，我們保持了這一優先地位。所有三個部門的調整後 EBITDA 均實現兩位數增長。巴西 SLAD 受益於每家餐廳更高的銷售額，這是運營槓桿超過固定成本的主要驅動因素。這導致兩個部門的 EBITDA 以美元計算強勁增長以及利潤率擴張。

NOLAD's EBITDA growth benefited from total sales growth but sales per unit is still below company average. This made it more difficult for operating leverage to offset the margin impact of the higher royalty versus last year. By now, most of you are familiar with the 3D strategy of digital delivery and drive-thru. All three components of the strategy performed well in the quarter.

NOLAD 的 EBITDA 增長得益於總銷售額的增長，但單位銷售額仍低於公司平均水平。這使得經營槓桿更難以抵消與去年相比較高的特許權使用費對利潤率的影響。到目前為止，你們中的大多數人都熟悉數字交付和得來速的 3D 策略。該戰略的所有三個組成部分在本季度均表現良好。

Digital, which includes sales from delivery, the mobile app and self-order kiosks achieved its highest-ever penetration in system-wide sales. As you already heard, the percentage of identifiable sales continued growing in the quarter as well. We expect to see this penetration increase once we launch our rewards program in all of Brazil.

包括送貨銷售、移動應用程序和自助售貨亭在內的數字銷售在全系統銷售中的滲透率達到有史以來最高。正如您已經聽說的那樣，本季度可識別銷售額的百分比也在繼續增長。一旦我們在整個巴西推出我們的獎勵計劃，我們希望看到這種滲透率增加。

Our pilot program has generated encouraging results and is being expanded to more restaurants in the country. We are still on track to launch the program in all of Brazil later this year and to the rest of our markets over the next couple of years. Delivery and drive-thru sales were up year-over-year and sequentially. We are particularly pleased with the sustained sales performance in these channels, especially with front counter sales growing more than 50% versus the prior year in constant currency.

我們的試點計劃取得了令人鼓舞的成果，並正在擴展到該國的更多餐廳。我們仍有望在今年晚些時候在整個巴西推出該計劃，並在未來幾年內推廣到我們的其他市場。送貨和免下車銷售同比和環比增長。我們對這些渠道的持續銷售業績感到特別滿意，尤其是前台銷售額與上一年相比以固定匯率計算增長了 50% 以上。

Delivery sales grew across the entire Arcos Dorados footprint, supported by strong gas volume growth in both SLAD and Brazil. Brazil's delivery sales grew by more than 22% in constant currency in the period and generated more than 17% of the division sales. Drive-thru sales rose by 13% in the first quarter versus last year. As expected, guest traffic in drive-thru is beginning to moderate given the growth in from counter sales.

在 SLAD 和巴西的天然氣銷量強勁增長的支持下，交付銷售額在整個 Arcos Dorados 業務範圍內都有所增長。在此期間，巴西的交付銷售額按固定匯率計算增長了 22% 以上，佔該部門銷售額的 17% 以上。第一季度的得來速銷售額與去年同期相比增長了 13%。正如預期的那樣，由於櫃檯銷售的增長，得來速的客人流量開始放緩。

Our balance sheet remains strong, even as we invest some of the cash to fund our growth plan. Our net leverage ratio remained at a very healthy 1x. We expect the net leverage ratio to remain well below our historical comfort range of 2 to 2.5x at the end of 2023. Historically, cash flow from operations is relatively low during the first half of the year, due to the seasonality of our working capital needs.

即使我們投資了一些現金來資助我們的增長計劃，我們的資產負債表依然強勁。我們的淨槓桿率保持在非常健康的 1 倍。我們預計到 2023 年底，淨槓桿率將遠低於我們 2 至 2.5 倍的歷史舒適區間。從歷史上看，由於我們營運資金的季節性，上半年的運營現金流相對較低需要。

This year's first quarter also reflects the additional openings at the end of 2022 and the increased openings plan for 2023. We expect cash conversion to remain in the 85% to 90% range for the full year. Last year, we exceeded openings guidance partly by accelerating a few restaurant openings earmarked for the first quarter of 2023. We still expect to open between 75 and 80 restaurants this year with a higher concentration of openings in the second half. We opened eight freestanding restaurants and capital expenditures were $47 million in the quarter. Finally, we made the first of four installments of this year's dividend at the end of March.

今年第一季度還反映了 2022 年底的新增開張和 2023 年增加的開張計劃。我們預計全年現金轉換率將保持在 85% 至 90% 的範圍內。去年，我們在一定程度上超過了開業指導，部分原因是加快了幾家指定於 2023 年第一季度開業的餐廳。我們仍預計今年將開設 75 至 80 家餐廳，下半年開業的集中度更高。本季度我們開設了 8 家獨立餐廳，資本支出為 4700 萬美元。最後，我們在 3 月底支付了今年四期股息中的第一期。

Marcelo, back to you.

馬塞洛，回到你身邊。

In the next few days, we will publish our 2022 social commitment and sustainable development report. In the report, you will see all the work we did last year across the six pillars of our recipe for the future. For example, the strong results we are generating make it impossible to continue investing in our growth in the communities we serve. Last year, we increased our renewal energy usage by nearly 2.5x, expanded our circular economy initiatives such as the recycling of oil and packaging, intensify our efforts to procure our ingredients from responsible sources, offer thousands of development and job opportunities for young people and distributed over 890,000 books for children to enjoy with their happy meals. You can learn more about all these initiatives by downloading the report in English from www.rescueforthefuture.com.

在接下來的幾天裡，我們將發布 2022 年社會承諾和可持續發展報告。在報告中，您將看到我們去年在未來秘訣的六大支柱方面所做的所有工作。例如，我們取得的強勁成果使我們無法繼續投資於我們所服務社區的發展。去年，我們將可再生能源的使用量增加了近 2.5 倍，擴大了我們的循環經濟計劃，例如回收石油和包裝，加大了從負責任來源採購原料的力度，為年輕人提供了數以千計的發展和就業機會，以及發放書籍89萬餘冊，讓孩子們在快樂的用餐中盡情享受。您可以從 www.rescueforthefuture.com 下載英文報告，了解所有這些舉措的更多信息。

Before we open the call up for Q&A, I would like to leave you with a few thoughts. First, we believe that building a love brand creates value for the company and its shareholders. This is why our marketing spend has shifted over time to focus on culturally relevant brand activations in our markets rather than just pricing and products.

在我們開始進行問答之前，我想給你留下一些想法。首先，我們相信打造愛心品牌能為公司和股東創造價值。這就是為什麼我們的營銷支出隨著時間的推移而轉向關注我們市場中與文化相關的品牌激活，而不僅僅是定價和產品。

Examples include the Big Brother Brazil and Lollapalooza sponsorships that drove brand affinity among younger guests. But the brand leaves every day in the more than 2,300 restaurants we operate. We have the largest freestanding restaurant portfolio by a wide margin. And as someone who began his career in the operation, I believe our operational expertise is second to none.

例子包括 Big Brother Brazil 和 Lollapalooza 的讚助，這些贊助提高了年輕賓客的品牌親和力。但該品牌每天都在我們經營的 2,300 多家餐廳離開。我們擁有最大的獨立餐廳組合，遙遙領先。作為從運營開始職業生涯的人，我相信我們的運營專業知識是首屈一指的。

Almost half of the portfolio has already been modernized to experience of the future, and all restaurants were converted to our culture of service several years ago. This service-oriented culture is what truly distinguishes the McDonald's restaurant experience in Latin America and the Caribbean. We are also part of the global McDonald's’ system. We develop tools such as the 3D strategy that help us maximize the potential of our restaurant footprint and operational expertise.

幾乎一半的組合已經現代化，以提供未來體驗，幾年前所有餐廳都轉變為我們的服務文化。這種以服務為導向的文化真正使拉丁美洲和加勒比地區的麥當勞餐廳體驗與眾不同。我們也是全球麥當勞系統的一部分。我們開發了 3D 戰略等工具，幫助我們最大限度地發揮餐廳足跡和運營專業知識的潛力。

Clearly, these channels are driving engagement with guests and offering them the choice of when, where and how to enjoy their favorite McDonald's orders. Finally, to build a strong brand and sustainable business model, we must operate responsibly. This is why we have the industry's leading ESG platform with ambitious initiatives and goals aimed at benefiting our business, the communities we serve and the planet we all share. Thank you for your ongoing support.

顯然，這些渠道正在推動與客人的互動，並讓他們選擇何時、何地以及如何享受他們最喜歡的麥當勞訂單。最後，要建立強大的品牌和可持續的商業模式，我們必須負責任地運營。這就是為什麼我們擁有行業領先的 ESG 平台，其中包含旨在造福我們的業務、我們服務的社區和我們共享的地球的雄心勃勃的舉措和目標。感謝您一直以來的支持。

Dan over to you to start the Q&A session.

Dan 請你開始問答環節。

Thanks, Marcelo. In order to get started, please minimize the presentation slides so that you can access the chat function on the left-hand side of the webcast platform.

謝謝，馬塞洛。為了開始，請最小化演示幻燈片，以便您可以訪問網絡直播平台左側的聊天功能。

(Operator Instructions)

（操作員說明）

Great. So our first question this morning comes from Joaquin Ley of Itau, and I'm going to combine it with a question that Thiago Bortoluci from Goldman Sachs sent us. Joaquin says, congratulations on the results. And can you please elaborate on the reasons explaining the very different margin performances in Brazil and SLAD versus NOLAD? And Thiago has a similar question that says margins for NOLAD came in a touch lower even if adjusted for the royalties despite solid same-store sales growth. Why is that? And what's the outlook? So that question, I'm going to turn it over to you, Mariano.

偉大的。所以我們今天早上的第一個問題來自 Itau 的 Joaquin Ley，我將把它與高盛的 Thiago Bortoluci 發給我們的問題結合起來。華金說，祝賀結果。您能否詳細說明巴西和 SLAD 與 NOLAD 的利潤率表現截然不同的原因？ Thiago 也有類似的問題，他說儘管同店銷售額穩步增長，但即使針對特許權使用費進行調整，NOLAD 的利潤率也略有下降。這是為什麼？前景如何？所以這個問題，我要交給你，馬里亞諾。

Perfect Dan. Good morning, everybody, and thank you for Joaquin and Thiago for the question. Well, first of all, the three divisions are showing sales growing well above inflation. We are very pleased with that. The three divisions are showing double-digit EBITDA growth in U.S. dollars. Brazil in this respect, is growing almost 30%, 29.2% SLAD 34.3% and NOLAD 10.7%. SLAD and Brazil with higher sales per unit are more capable of leveraging our fixed costs. And with that, even offset the royalty step-up that happened in August last year.

完美的丹。大家早上好，感謝 Joaquin 和 Thiago 提出的問題。好吧，首先，這三個部門的銷售額增長遠高於通貨膨脹率。我們對此感到非常高興。這三個部門的 EBITDA 以美元計算呈兩位數增長。巴西在這方面增長了近 30%、29.2%、SLAD 34.3% 和 NOLAD 10.7%。單位銷售額較高的 SLAD 和巴西更有能力利用我們的固定成本。這樣，甚至抵消了去年 8 月發生的版稅增加。

NOLAD on the other hand, with lower sales per store, and also with a higher exposure to food and paper imported goods is less able for the women to leverage on those fixed costs. And that's the main reason why we are seeing different behavior between Brazilian SLAD on one side and NOLAD on the other. Regarding the outlook in general for -- on a consolidated basis, here, our plan is clear, and that's our expectation for the rest of the year. We remain very focused on driving top line with sustainable volume growth in all channels to deliver the EBITDA growth in dollars with a very healthy margin profile.

另一方面，NOLAD 每家商店的銷售額較低，而且食品和紙質進口商品的風險較高，女性利用這些固定成本的能力較弱。這就是為什麼我們看到一方面是巴西 SLAD，另一方面是 NOLAD 之間行為不同的主要原因。關於總體前景 - 在綜合基礎上，我們的計劃很明確，這是我們對今年剩餘時間的期望。我們仍然非常專注於通過所有渠道的可持續銷量增長來推動營收，以實現以美元計算的 EBITDA 增長和非常健康的利潤率。

This is what we have been doing last year, we are continuing to do during this year, and that's our expectation for the year. Regarding, for example, food and paper, we expect to have a similar figure than we had last year, and we expect to leverage for all the fixed costs, mainly you will see that on payroll, on G&A and other occupancy that -- when sales continue to grow above inflation, we would expect to see leverage on those.

這是我們去年一直在做的事情，今年我們將繼續這樣做，這是我們對這一年的期望。例如，關於食品和紙張，我們預計會有與去年相似的數字，我們希望對所有固定成本進行槓桿化，主要是你會在工資單、G&A 和其他佔用方面看到——當銷售額繼續以高於通脹的速度增長，我們預計會看到這些槓桿作用。

Great. Thanks, Mariano. The next question actually is the first two parts of Thiago's original question.

偉大的。謝謝，馬里亞諾。下一個問題實際上是 Thiago 原始問題的前兩部分。

Congrats on the amazing results. A couple of questions, both of which will be for Marcelo. On Brazil, how have same-store sales performed throughout the quarter, especially in March? And what does the quarter performance imply for market share evolution. That's the first part. And maybe, Marcelo, do you want to start with that, and I'll give you the second one here in a second.

祝賀驚人的結果。有幾個問題，都是給馬塞洛的。在巴西，整個季度（尤其是 3 月）的同店銷售額表現如何？季度業績對市場份額的演變意味著什麼。這是第一部分。也許，馬塞洛，你想從這個開始嗎，我馬上給你第二個。

Excellent. Thank you, thank you Dan and hi Thiago nice to have you in the call. Well, we are very pleased with the performance of sales in the whole company, but particularly in Brazil, we did extremely well across the quarter. Even though during the first 2 months, numbers, figures for comparable sales were better because the base of comparison in 2022 was still affected by the Omicron impact in some restrictions. But we did well, very well in March. We grew sales, comparable sales well above inflation and we grew volumes which is very, very important for us. And most importantly, the trends that we are seeing in the second quarter shows that we are keeping momentum in Brazil and in the whole company.

出色的。謝謝你，謝謝 Dan，你好 Thiago 很高興你能來電話。好吧，我們對整個公司的銷售業績感到非常滿意，尤其是在巴西，我們在整個季度的表現非常出色。儘管在前 2 個月，可比銷售額的數字更好，因為 2022 年的比較基數仍然受到 Omicron 在某些限制中的影響。但我們在三月份做得很好，非常好。我們增加了銷售額，可比銷售額遠高於通貨膨脹率，我們增加了銷量，這對我們來說非常非常重要。最重要的是，我們在第二季度看到的趨勢表明我們在巴西和整個公司都保持著增長勢頭。

So sales trends in the second quarter are doing extremely well. So we remain cautiously optimistic as we go through the rest of this year. We knew by the figures published by other retailers in the market that there are some headwinds in Brazil, but we are beating the market, and that's reflected in market share figures in Brazil. We continue to do extremely well. We have more than doubled the market share of our closest competitor. And based on the public figures about comparable sales in the market. We are getting the gap even bigger, thanks to our acceleration in the comparable sales performance.

因此，第二季度的銷售趨勢非常好。因此，在今年餘下的時間裡，我們仍保持謹慎樂觀。我們從市場上其他零售商發布的數據中了解到巴西存在一些不利因素，但我們正在擊敗市場，這反映在巴西的市場份額數據中。我們繼續做得非常好。我們的市場份額是我們最接近的競爭對手的兩倍多。並基於有關市場可比銷售額的公開數據。由於我們在可比銷售業績方面的加速，我們的差距越來越大。

Perfect. And the second part of Thiago's question, Marcelo, is Argentina has been extremely volatile. And apparently, you closed some stores in SLAD. How are you seeing the consumer backdrop in the region?

完美的。蒂亞戈問題的第二部分，馬塞洛，是阿根廷一直極不穩定。顯然，您關閉了 SLAD 的一些商店。您如何看待該地區的消費者背景？

Yes. First, let me tell you that the restaurants that we closed in SLAD, most of them are in Venezuela. We closed six restaurants in Venezuela. So we didn't close any restaurant in Argentina. And despite the challenging macro environment in the market, in Argentina, we are very pleased with the performance of our business in that country, where the McDonald's brand has gained preference and market share in the last several quarters.

是的。首先我告訴大家，我們在SLAD關閉的餐廳，大部分都在委內瑞拉。我們關閉了委內瑞拉的六家餐廳。所以我們沒有關閉阿根廷的任何餐廳。儘管市場宏觀環境充滿挑戰，但在阿根廷，我們對我們在該國的業務表現感到非常滿意，麥當勞品牌在過去幾個季度獲得了偏好和市場份額。

The volume growth has been the real story in Argentina. At the beginning, thanks to the 3D strategy. But more recently, from counter volume has reaccelerated and is now above pre-pandemic levels in Argentina. So Argentina has one of the highest levels of guest traffic per restaurant in all of our markets in all of Arco Dorados and digital channels has a lot to do with that.

銷量增長一直是阿根廷的真實情況。一開始，多虧了3D攻略。但最近，阿根廷的櫃檯成交量重新加速，現在高於大流行前的水平。因此，阿根廷是我們所有 Arco Dorados 市場中每家餐廳客流量最高的國家之一，數字渠道與此有很大關係。

The digital sales penetration in Argentina is one of the highest in our region, and that allows us to work with segmentation and personalization and these tools help us not only in terms of growing sales and volumes, but helps us in terms of improving our profitability in the market. So we are very, very pleased with the performance in Argentina, despite the challenging macro environment.

阿根廷的數字銷售滲透率是我們地區最高的之一，這使我們能夠進行細分和個性化，這些工具不僅幫助我們增加銷售額和銷量，而且幫助我們提高盈利能力市場。因此，儘管宏觀環境充滿挑戰，但我們對阿根廷的表現非常非常滿意。

Perfect. Our next question is also a two-parter from Melissa Byun of Bank of America. The first one for you, Mariano. Can you please discuss the outlook for protein and other food costs and any hedges or purchase commitments you've made?

完美的。我們的下一個問題也是來自美國銀行的 Melissa Byun 的兩位搭檔。第一個給你，馬里亞諾。您能否討論一下蛋白質和其他食品成本的前景以及您做出的任何對沖或購買承諾？

Perfect. Thanks, Melissa, for the question. In terms of food and paper costs, we are expecting for the full year a similar cost to last year, as I mentioned in the previous question. Regarding protein and food cost pressures we are seeing actually less pressure on that front in the beginning of the year. But that, together with our proven pricing strategy that is allowing us to grow sales above inflation. That's the reason why we are expecting stable food and paper costs throughout this year.

完美的。謝謝梅麗莎提出的問題。在食品和紙張成本方面，我們預計全年的成本與去年類似，正如我在上一個問題中提到的那樣。關於蛋白質和食品成本壓力，我們看到年初這方面的壓力實際上有所減輕。但是，再加上我們行之有效的定價策略，使我們的銷售額增長高於通貨膨脹率。這就是我們預計今年全年食品和紙張成本穩定的原因。

And regarding the hedges, as we already mentioned our policy is to hedge 50% of projected for paper exposure on a running basis. So we're doing that with an outlook of 2 to 3 quarters and that's what we continue to do, and we will do that for this year.

關於對沖，正如我們已經提到的，我們的政策是在運行的基礎上對沖 50% 的預計票據風險敞口。因此，我們正在以 2 到 3 個季度的前景來做這件事，這就是我們將繼續做的事情，我們將在今年這樣做。

Great. The second part of Melissa's question is can you comment on the pricing and promotional environment in your markets -- in your major markets? Are you seeing any acceleration in the market share shift from the informal and independent to the formal and chained operators. And she says, thank you, that one for you, Luis.

偉大的。 Melissa 問題的第二部分是您能否評論一下您所在市場（主要市場）的定價和促銷環境？您是否看到市場份額從非正式和獨立運營商加速轉移到正式和連鎖運營商。她說，謝謝你，那個給你的，路易斯。

Thank you, Melissa, for the question. I will start with the second part of the question. We do not see an acceleration in the market share sheet from informal to formal operators. What we are seeing is a rational competitive environment and sales recovery of smaller branded competitors of the sector of the QSR sector but we are prepared to face future competitive pressures. We think we have the right strategies, and we are focusing on execution at the restaurant level.

謝謝梅麗莎提出的問題。我將從問題的第二部分開始。我們沒有看到從非正規運營商到正規運營商的市場份額加速。我們看到的是一個合理的競爭環境和快餐行業較小品牌競爭對手的銷售復甦，但我們已準備好面對未來的競爭壓力。我們認為我們有正確的策略，我們專注於餐廳層面的執行。

Our strategy is built on offering value with a pricing architecture that maximizes the targeted or addressable market. And that allow us to offer attractive value for our guests. So we have positive results in market share in the first quarter of 2023, our big advantage was 2 to 3.5x as big as that of our two closest competitors. Dan?

我們的戰略建立在通過最大化目標或可尋址市場的定價架構提供價值的基礎上。這使我們能夠為我們的客人提供有吸引力的價值。因此，我們在 2023 年第一季度的市場份額方面取得了積極成果，我們的最大優勢是我們兩個最接近的競爭對手的 2 到 3.5 倍。擔？

Thanks, Luis. Our next question -- actually, a couple of questions come from Antonio Hernandez of Barclays. My questions are, number one, where are you seeing more payroll and labor headwinds? And we'll start with you Mariano.

謝謝，路易斯。我們的下一個問題——實際上，有幾個問題來自巴克萊銀行的安東尼奧·埃爾南德斯。我的問題是，第一，你在哪裡看到更多的工資和勞動力逆風？我們將從馬里亞諾開始。

Perfect. Thanks, Antonio, for your question. First of all, let me say that we are very pleased we the level we are having in parallel on a consolidated level below 20% of revenues. That's a very healthy figure for Arcos and we expect to continuing to obtain leverage on the payroll line as we continue to grow sales above inflation. Having said that, what we are observing is that we are having more leverage in Brazil and a bit more pressure on the labor front in NOLAD and in some markets in SLAD.

完美的。安東尼奧，謝謝你的問題。首先，讓我說，我們很高興我們在合併水平上同時擁有低於收入 20% 的水平。這對 Arcos 來說是一個非常健康的數字，我們希望隨著我們繼續以高於通貨膨脹率的速度增長，繼續在工資單上獲得影響力。話雖如此，我們觀察到的是，我們在巴西擁有更多的影響力，在 NOLAD 和 SLAD 的一些市場的勞動力方面面臨更大的壓力。

Perfect. Thanks, Mariano. The second part of Antonio's question for you, Luis, is the deceleration in drive-through changing your pipeline for this format in terms of openings and modernizations?

完美的。謝謝，馬里亞諾。路易斯，安東尼奧向你提出的問題的第二部分是，直通車的減速是否會在開放和現代化方面改變這種格式的管道？

All right. Yes, thank you for the question. The first, it is important to say that the driving channel had a strong growth during the pandemic and we have the chance to have new customers, new guests. They have the opportunity to try even though that would be protected in our markets to try this challenge for the first time. okay? They found out that it was not only fun, convenient safe but cool. And now with a very strong recovery in front counter with more than 50% in the first quarter of '22. Even with that, the sales are growing about 13% versus the first quarter of 2022.

好的。是的，謝謝你的提問。首先，重要的是要說駕駛渠道在大流行期間增長強勁，我們有機會擁有新客戶、新客人。他們有機會嘗試，即使這在我們的市場上會受到保護，也是第一次嘗試這一挑戰。好的？他們發現這不僅有趣、方便安全而且很酷。現在前台櫃檯恢復非常強勁，22 年第一季度恢復超過 50%。儘管如此，與 2022 年第一季度相比，銷售額仍增長了約 13%。

So this is expected and a moderation in this traffic today in the cars that we attend -- but our challenge is now to continue making drive-thru a growth engine for the company. And we have to make adjustments in operations and we have the right set of programs in place for marketing and digital. Even with the modernization we make with just -- adjustments that we make in the buildings. We make not only for drive-thru, but for delivery, we made our operation easier, and that allow us to capture additional savings. Dan?

因此，這是意料之中的，並且今天我們參加的汽車的交通流量有所緩和 - 但我們現在的挑戰是繼續使得來速成為公司的增長引擎。我們必須對運營進行調整，並且我們有一套正確的營銷和數字計劃。即使進行了現代化改造，我們也只是對建築物進行了調整。我們不僅提供得來速服務，還提供送貨服務，讓我們的運營更加輕鬆，這讓我們能夠節省更多費用。擔？

Thanks, Luis. The next question comes from Ulises Argote of JPMorgan. Congrats on the results. Just a quick one on the sales trends. Any color on how performance has been into the start of second quarter '23 and how sales performed sequentially through the first quarter of '23 as we rolled out the effect from Omicron on the base. And that one, I'll turn it over to you, Marcelo.

謝謝，路易斯。下一個問題來自摩根大通的 Ulises Argote。祝賀結果。簡單介紹一下銷售趨勢。關於性能如何進入 23 年第二季度開始以及銷售如何在 23 年第一季度連續執行的任何顏色，因為我們推出了 Omicron 對基地的影響。而那個，我會把它交給你，馬塞洛。

Okay. Thank you, Ulises, for the question. As I mentioned when I answered the first question about Brazil's performance in the comparable sales figures for the first quarter. That was the same case for the whole company. So within the quarter, the base of comparison of the first quarter 2022 was easier for the first couple of months. But again, we saw very strong results both in terms of volumes growth. And in terms of comparable sales growth well above inflation during the first quarter. And in the second quarter, same -- and I mentioned before for Brazil, we continue to see very strong sales performance.

好的。謝謝 Ulises 提出的問題。正如我在回答有關巴西第一季度可比銷售數據表現的第一個問題時提到的那樣。這對整個公司來說都是一樣的。因此，在本季度內，2022 年第一季度的比較基數在前幾個月比較容易。但同樣，我們在銷量增長方面也看到了非常強勁的結果。就第一季度可比銷售額增長遠高於通脹而言。在第二季度，同樣 - 我之前提到過巴西，我們繼續看到非常強勁的銷售業績。

In fact, I would say that May has been a very strong month. The first couple -- two couple of weeks of May have been very, very strong. So we remain very confident that we have in place the right marketing plans, the right marketing initiatives and all the structural competitive advantages that brought us to this -- to this point that brought us to this leadership position, we continue to deliver against the environment that we are facing in the different markets. So very encouraging figures coming from sales and volume growth in the second quarter of the year.

事實上，我想說 5 月是一個非常強勁的月份。第一對 - 五月的兩個星期非常非常強大。因此，我們仍然非常有信心，我們已經制定了正確的營銷計劃、正確的營銷計劃和所有結構性競爭優勢，正是這些優勢讓我們走到了這一步——這讓我們處於領先地位，我們將繼續致力於保護環境我們面對的是不同的市場。今年第二季度的銷售額和銷量增長非常令人鼓舞。

Perfect. So we have a question from Anik -- and Anik, I apologize if I don't pronounce your last name correctly, Matsuddy from American Trust Investment Advisors. Congratulations on the performance. And can you please expand more on the latest digital program expected to release in Brazil later this year in other regions in the following years? And that one is for you, Luis.

完美的。所以我們有一個來自 Anik 的問題——Anik，如果我沒有正確念出你的姓氏，我深表歉意，來自 American Trust Investment Advisors 的 Matsuddy。祝賀演出。您能否詳細介紹預計將於今年晚些時候在巴西其他地區發布的最新數字節目？那是給你的，路易斯。

We currently have a loyalty program that is exclusive to drive-thru that is called the Club VIP Automac. By the end of March, we have had around 1.4 million members but we have launched, we've mentioned this before in the last calls about we launched a pilot of our loyalty program (inaudible) operating in Brazil with very, very good results. Without even -- without a massive media launch -- we not only an increase in value of identifiable sales but an increase in visit frequency -- that's why today, we are starting the expansion of the program to more restaurants, including several franchisees -- and the intention is that, like I said, to launch to all of Brazil later this year and to the rest of our 20 markets over the next couple of years. Dan?

我們目前有一個專用於得來速的忠誠度計劃，稱為 Club VIP Automac。到 3 月底，我們已經擁有大約 140 萬會員，但我們已經啟動，我們之前在上次電話會議中提到過這一點，我們啟動了在巴西運營的忠誠度計劃（聽不清）試點，取得了非常非常好的結果。甚至——沒有大規模的媒體發布——我們不僅增加了可識別銷售的價值，而且增加了訪問頻率——這就是為什麼今天，我們開始將該計劃擴展到更多的餐廳，包括一些特許經營商——正如我所說，我們的目標是在今年晚些時候向整個巴西推出，並在未來幾年向我們 20 個市場中的其他市場推出。擔？

Great. Thanks, Luis. I'm showing no more questions in the queue here. So I guess we've reached the end of our Q&A session. I want to thank everyone again for your interest in Arcos Dorados and for joining today's webcast. Look forward to speaking with you again in the middle of August on our second quarter 2023 earnings webcast. And until then, stay safe, and have a great day, everyone.

偉大的。謝謝，路易斯。我不會在隊列中顯示更多問題。所以我想我們的問答環節已經結束了。我想再次感謝大家對 Arcos Dorados 的興趣和參加今天的網絡廣播。期待在 8 月中旬的 2023 年第二季度收益網絡廣播中再次與您交談。在那之前，大家注意安全，祝大家有美好的一天。