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Taco Bell Will Probably Be Making Doritos Tacos Long After You Die
By
Christopher Robbins
Published May 6, 2013
Modified May 6, 2013
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Gothamist
By
Christopher Robbins
Published May 6, 2013
Modified May 6, 2013
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Taco Bell has sold more than 450 million Doritos Locos Tacos, not counting the Cool Ranch variety that was released in March. The company had to hire 15,000 more employees to keep up with demand. Yet we're not even close to hitting Peak Locos: buried in FastCompany's fascinating, hilarious profile of Taco Bell and Frito-Lay's partnership is the revelation that spicy Doritos Flamas Tacos are next in what sounds like an infinite parade of flavors. " ' Well, when you launch three or four of these things you'll run out of ideas,' " Taco Bell CEO Greg Creed says skeptics tell him. "I'm like, 'Not really.' "
Indeed, there are 123 flavors of Doritos (here are 102 of them, and some reviews) so Yogurt and Mint taco shells may be in our not-so-distant future.
Though the whole piece is worth your 10 minutes, our favorite moment comes when the Heroes of Business tell The Suits to Stand Down:
But while buzz for the DLT's national launch was locked in, a deal between Taco Bell and Frito-Lay was not. As Taco Bell legend has it, though the companies had spent years working together on the DLT, no official contracts had ever been signed. Taco Bell's 50th birthday was fast approaching when Greg Creed and then-Frito-Lay CEO Al Carey met in Creed's office to hash out final details.
"We both realized that if we let the lawyers get involved, this thing would get slowed down and bogged down. So we did a handshake deal--that's all we had: You're going to spend the money, and I'm going to spend the money [on the DLT]," Creed recalls. "Everyone was like, 'You can't launch without a contract.' And we were like, 'Just watch us.'"
Tagged
doritos locos tacos
heroes
taco bell
Christopher Robbins
Christopher Robbins is a New York City reporter covering transportation, affordable housing, local politics, and criminal justice. His work has also appeared in New York Magazine, The Village Voice and The New York Times. Chris is a graduate of Patrick Henry High School in Roanoke, Virginia, and enjoys biking to Fort Tilden in the summertime.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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