1. Taco Bell
It's #1 for the third year in a row. What keeps the cravings so strong? The brand has mastered the risky art of being cool-by paying close attention to both outsiders and insiders.
by Nate Hopper
The Mexican Pizza was a goner. Or so Taco Bell thought.
It was 2020, and the pandemic had upended the food business. Like most restaurants, Taco Bell was busily simplifying the menu for the sake of a smaller restaurant staff. That's when executives zeroed in on the Mexican Pizza, a long- time menu item that was a bit of an outlier. It used several ingredients that no other product did. It took three or four minutes to make, while other items took just 30 seconds. Restaurants sold relatively few each day-at least, in comparison to thousands of tacos. "It was a cult product, but it wasn't a big product in terms of revenue," says Taco Bell CEO Mark King. The decision was painful but clear: Goodbye, Mexican Pizza.
Little did they know. "As soon as we took it off [the menu], we had all this noise," King recalls. One petition to save the Mexican Pizza quickly amassed 50,000 signees-and eventually accrued over 170,000. In the spring of 2021, the alluringly raunchy rapper-singer Doja Cat tweeted to her millions of followers, "I will do everything in my power to bring back the mexican pizza from taco bell." (And then, months later, somewhat more spicily: "I want my fuckin mexican pizza back @tacobell why u quiet.") Meanwhile, King's inbox was filling up. It's normally peppered with complaints about bad experiences at restaurants, but now he was getting twice as many messages, all hitting a single note: Bring back the Mexican Pizza.
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der January - February 2023-Ausgabe von Entrepreneur US.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent ? Anmelden
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der January - February 2023-Ausgabe von Entrepreneur US.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent? Anmelden
The Better Way to Fail
The next time something you do flops, here's a new way to learn from it.
Making the Midlife Leap
After getting laid off in her early 50s, Keri Gardner decided she wanted to control her own fate-so she bought a franchise with her 401(k).
A Quick Guide to Franchise Ownership Costs
Franchising costs money. Here's what everything means.
This Doughnut Franchise Is Hitting the Road
To grow, DonutNV needed a steady supply of delivery trailers. So last year, it started making them itself.
3 Steps to Find Your Perfect Franchise
There are many brands out there. Finding the right one is up to you.
This Fencing Franchise Is Ready for Growth
Superior Fence & Rail nearly doubled its sales in one year. How? By stepping back and focusing on fundamentals.
What Are a Franchisee's Role and Responsibilities?
If you're going to be a franchisee, you should know exactly what's expected of you.
This Dog-Training Franchise Is Zooming Ahead
After a rough few years, Zoom Room made major changes...and has emerged as a stronger, faster, very well-behaved business.
What's the Real Damage?
Most clean-up companies just fix messes, like fire or flood damage. But 911 Restoration's new CEO saw an opportunity to help with the other emergency they often encounter: customers' emotional trauma.
Mental Health Services, Franchised
The U.S. is facing a growing mental health crisis. Ellie Mental Health wants to be the solution.