Get All Access for $5/mo

#4 on the Franchise 500: Why Taco Bell Has Its Sights Set On Your City The #4 company on our Franchise 500 list knows that to grow its customer base, it must go where customers are: metropolitan communities.

By Matthew McCreary

This story appears in the January 2019 issue of Entrepreneur. Subscribe »

Courtesy of Taco Bell

Started franchising: 1964
Total units: 6,999
Cost to open: $525.1K to $2.6M

There's plenty of reason to toast Taco Bell -- and not just because the company's Cantina locations now serve boozy beverages. Taco Bell, which has moved up from #8 on our list last year, is freshly focused on better serving urban markets, planning to open 1,000 new franchise locations across the U.S. by 2022. Some of those units will be its upmarket Cantina concept, while others will be walk-in shops with no drive-through option.

"In a traditional Taco Bell restaurant, the drive-through accounts for about 70 percent of sales," says Mike Grams, global chief operating officer. "In a city where a majority of customers walk and take public transportation, we had to create a concept that would allow us to be locally relevant."

Related: 20 Facts You Probably Didn't Know About Taco Bell

The focus on urban markets has hardly distracted from growth elsewhere: Taco Bell added more than 130 U.S. restaurants in 2018, and in November it opened its first London location. International exploration will continue this year with new outposts in Thailand, New Zealand, and Australia.

But better serving its customers means plenty more than simply opening new locations. A newly launched Cravings Value Menu features Taco Bell's greatest hits at $1 and $5 price points, and a Make It Meatless feature on the website and app allows vegetarian customers to easily replace meat with beans in any item. "In order to reach our growth goals, it's key that we increase access through our mobile app, kiosks, and delivery; use flexible restaurant formats; and cultivate the Taco Bell culture that consumers want to be part of," Grams says.

Related: 5 Steps You Need to Take Before You Buy a Franchise

To see our complete Franchisee 500 rankings, please click here, or view more stories here.

Matthew McCreary

Entrepreneur Staff

Associate Editor, Contributed Content

Matthew McCreary is the associate editor for contributed content at Entrepreneur.com.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Side Hustle

At Age 15, He Used Facebook Marketplace to Start a Side Hustle — Then It Became Something Much Bigger: 'Raised Over $1.6 Million'

Dylan Zajac, now a 21-year-old senior at Babson College, wanted to bridge the digital divide.

Side Hustle

'I Just Hustled': She Earned More Than $300,000 Wrapping Gifts Last Year — and It All Started With a Side Hustle

When Michelle Hensley lost her husband to cancer, she needed to figure out how to earn an income for her family.

Business Ideas

63 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2024

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2024.

Franchise

McDonald's Announces the Return of the Snack Wrap in 2025 — Here's What to Expect From Its Comeback

The decision comes after years of persistent customer demand for the portable snack, which debuted nearly two decades ago.

Business News

OpenAI Just Released Its Text-to-Video Generator, Sora. Here's How the New AI Could Impact Small Businesses and Creators.

Sora has a variety of use cases for businesses, from social media campaigns to video creation.

Innovation

These Entrepreneurs Created a League That Turns Gamers Into Pro Race Car Drivers: 'We're Giving Drivers a Sustainable Career Path'

Racing Prodigy's innovative E2Real sports league is lowering the high-cost barrier to entry for drivers to take their passion to the track.