Taco Bell

Description

1946: A START FOR BELL
With the end of World War II, Taco Bell founder Glen Bell returns to the quiet town of San Bernardino, where he opens his first QSR: Bell's Drive-In, a hotdog stand. 1952: OUT WITH THE OLD Bell sells the first stand to build an even better one. On the menu: bugers and hotdogs. When the McDonald brothers open their first store in the same town, he opts for Mexican food instead. 1952: AN IDEA WORTH KEEPING Bell's second stand starts off selling hotdogs while he researches tacos. His specially formulated chilidog sause later becomes Taco Bell's taco sauce. 1952: FULL OF NEW IDEAS During taco research, Bell invents a new way to fry tacos using a crude stainless steel deep fry basket. His commercially fried shell idea is picked up by other taco shell manufacturers and made widely available. 1954: MORE TACO BIZ Bell builds three new stands named Taco Tia. They are located in San Bernardino, Redlands and Riverside. 1962: FINALLY! The first Taco Bells are born; and they're octuplets! Eight small Taco Bells open in the Long Beach, Paramount and L.A. areas, all of which are still operating today. 1975: NO BELL IN TACO BELL! Bell steps down as Chairman of the Board. Three years later he sells his 868 stores to PepsiCo. Inc. 1977: HELLO WORLD The first International Taco Bell restaurant opens in Guam. 1981: HELLO CANADA Southwestern Ontario gets its first taste of Taco Bell as the first store opens in Windsor. 1988: KEEP THE CHANGE Taco Bell launches the value initiative, lowering the price of new menu items and introducing free drink refills. Because we all know that a penny saved means money for more tacos. 1991: ONE ON EVERY CORNER Taco Bell fulfills its promise to provide food "wherever and whenever people are hungry." Taco Bell's compact carts, kiosks and in-line units begin appearing in airports, gas stations, retail stores, cinemas, stadiums and more. 1996: TWO OF A GREAT THING The first location opens that houses both a KFC and a Taco Bell, signalling the start of multibranding and more options for hungry customers. 1997: YO QUIERO TACO BELL! Taco bell introduces everyone's favorite talking Chihuahua in its new multi-spot advertising campaign. That same year TacoBell.com is born. 1998: ANOTHER IN THE LINE-UP Taco Bell introduces North America to the Gordita. The new item takes its place amoungst the exciting tastes of Tacos, Burritos, Fajitas and Wraps. 1999: I'D LIKE TO THANK MY MOM, MY MANAGER Taco Bell recieves The Grande EFFIE, one of the most prestigeous awards in the advertising industry. Later that year, Chalupas and Grande Meals are added to the menu. 2000: BELL'S BELL Taco Bell runs a full-page advertisment in the New York Times announcing the purchace of the Liberty Bell to "reduce the country's debt" and renaming it "the Taco Liberty Bell." April Fool's! 2004: GET SAUCY Taco Bell invites consumers to "share your sauce wisdom," and starts printing clever phrases on hot sause packets. 2004: TACO BELL STEPS UP TO THE PLATE Taco Bell thinks "Outside the Bun" and inside the batter's box, becoming the "Official Quick Service Restaurant of Major League Baseball." 2005: MORE OF A GOOD THING Taco Bell launches the highly portable Crunchwrap Supreme® to millions of Dashboard Diners. It's loved so much it becomes a permanent menu item in 2006. 2006: A NEW ARM OF YUM Originally operating under the name Tricon Global Restaurants, the Canadian operations changes its name to Yum! Brands Canada. Somewhere a maple leaf, a swatch of red plaid and a lumberjack rejoice at the new Canadian addition. 2007: MORE DIGITAL TACOS Taco Bell launches Tacobell.ca with a whole new look and some new Canadian content to reflect their presence in the Great White North. 2009: NEW SITE KNOCKS SOCKS OFF Taco Bell unveils its new Canadian site. Jaws drop nation-wide. 2010: FILLED WITH SADNESS We mourn the loss of our founder, Glen Bell. A great American entrepreneur and innovator, his legacy lives on in our people and our brand. 2011: A MAKEOVER A fresh new look for the TacoBell.ca site. Everything you want to know about Taco Bell is just a click away.