Taco Bell ‘on fire’ as Mexican fast-food chain gears up for 100th UK site
“We’re on fire” is how Taco Bell International’s president Julie Felss Masino described the Mexican fast food chain’s rollout to CityA.M.
After launching 50 sites in the UK over the past decade, the US-based firm has expanded by another extra 50 sites in just the past 18 months.
The chain, a subsidiary of Pizza Hut and KFC owner Yum! Brands, is eyeing “several hundred” UK sites. It will open its 100th site this month.
“This is really the ground floor of growth for us,” Julie Felss Masino explained.
However, the expansion comes at a time when consumers have already started pulling back on spending in casual dining, with household bills rocketing across the board.
Pressure on consumers was “very real,” she said. “You can see it everywhere you go.”
However, one of Taco Bell’s “core values is value,” she added, pointing to a menu offering products starting as low as a £1 price point.
“You can fill yourself up with not a lot of money,” she said.
During the pandemic, the chain introduced bundle offers, offering meals for groups at a “reasonable price point”.
However, like its peers, the brand had been forced to hike prices this year, with supply chain costs going up and utility costs soaring after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Prices were lifted around five per cent in April, consistent with the market, Felss Masino said.
Despite gloomy economic forecasts, the president was optimistic about the future of the sector. “If you look at the last couple years of the pandemic and the war, the thing I have found is that humans are incredibly resilient.”
In February, Taco Bell owner Yum posted fourth-quarter net income of $330m, down from $332m the year prior.
Its restaurant brands caused margins to shrink as businesses faced hiked operational costs.
“While all these things keep coming at us, we lead with our hearts and keep moving forward. There’s always going to be something in the business and our team are really focused on taking care of our customers.”
With a variety of channels for consumers, Felss Masino was also confident that convenience would be a pull factor for consumers, despite a 40-year high inflation rate.
While keen to consolidate its delivery offering, the brand was not keen on dark kitchens. “It’s such a fun, engaging, really relevant distinctive brand and we want our guests to have that experience with us,” she said.
While rival Tortilla snapped up Chilango last year, Taco Bell was not too bothered about any acquisitions. “We’re growing and really focused on doing us and doing us well,” Felss Masino said.
London was an “amazing, world class destination,” with the capital the “natural place” for more sites, she added.
“The number one thing we hear on social media is ‘when is there going to be a Taco Bell in my local community,’” she said.
“When I was here in December, I had the opportunity to go to an opening in Guildford at 9am or 10am, there was a line wrapped around the block. At 9am people were lining up for tacos. Some of those kids were meant to be at school, I won’t tell their parents.”