It’s one of the most festive times of the year companywide. We just concluded rah rah recognition rallies in Minnesota, Michigan and Illinois. In total, an estimated 275 team members showed up to these events!
Our people are met with excitement the minute they enter — high fives, party music and chatter grows with intensity. It’s obvious that Border Foods rallies are “come as you are” events where hoodies, baseball caps and Taco Bell merch are welcome.
At Border Foods, when we rally as a company, we relish in reasons to celebrate! President Aaron Engler shared recent company successes with the Minnesota crowd: year-to-date comp sales of 22.7 percent, 2022 sales hitting $490 million and companywide fundraising pulling in $2.5 million for Taco Bell Foundation’s Round Up program.
From the most motivated individual team members to outstanding teams in our restaurants, we work hard to call attention to everyone’s best efforts. Here are more cheer-provoking highlights:
Award presentations in Minnesota kicked off with the reveal of three unsuspecting but well deserving Heart of Border Foods recipients: kindhearted RGM Donald Mendoza; Loss Prevention Manager Ed Heskett, a man of true integrity; and the lively Area Coach Zack Shumaker;
Jose Jimenez was named RGM of the Year; Miguel Avila, AC of the Year; and Ken Lund, Region Coach of the Year;
We announced the launch of a new in-house reward program for managers called Club Fuego;
Restaurants with the highest sales (Stinson, MN made $5 MILLION in 2022!) and fastest drive-thru speed of service were celebrated, among the many other restaurant-level achievements;
And many more deserving individuals (see the full list) were recognized for their service (congrats to Julilyn Sargent for 40 years!), leadership and commitment to excellence.
Taco Bell’s newest, most innovative restaurant prototype, Border Foods’ Defy in Brooklyn Park, opened its drive-thru lanes June 7 and continues to cause buzz in the media. Most recently, Taco Bell COO Mike Grams was featured on Restaurant Business’ podcast, A Deeper Dive. Take a listen here to what he has to say about Defy,“the future of digital with a hint of traditional.”
The brainchild of Border Foods’ own Jeff and Lee Engler, and a strong example of synergistic collaboration between a franchisee and Taco Bell, Defy truly defied odds with its quick construction timeline, fast forwarding from conceptual idea to a grand opening celebration in just under two years. And also becoming one positive thing to emerge out of a modern pandemic!
The excitement on opening day was obvious among event attendees, which included many of Defy’s 50-some restaurant employees; the Engler brothers; President Aaron Engler and members of the Border Foods’ leadership team; and representatives from the City of Brooklyn Park, Taco Bell corporate, and Vertical Works.
Aaron Engler declared Defy’s significance as“the first in the country, in the world, of anything like this for any quick service restaurant, not just Taco Bell.”
Mike and Brooklyn Park Mayor Lisa Jacobson also gave remarks on opening day to the crowd.
“We have over 90 restaurants, but we don’t have anything like this!” Mayor Jacobson said.“And neither does anybody else!”
The event concluded appropriately, with confetti and tacos for all. Check it out:
New concept reimagines the traditional drive-thru with an elevated kitchen and unique vertical lift that delivers food to four drive-thru lanes for a faster, contactless experience
Brooklyn Park, Minn. (June 6, 2022) – Minnesota-based and family-owned Taco Bell® franchisee Border Foods today announced that Taco Bell Defy® will open its doors – and most importantly, its four-lane drive-thru – in Brooklyn Park on June 7. The first of its kind two-story model delivers innovative technology and design, like a proprietary vertical lift to transport iconic Taco Bell menu items straight from the kitchen to customers.
“Taco Bell Defy embodies the innovative, entrepreneurial spirit of Minnesota businesses and franchisees,” said Lee Engler, co-founder and CEO of Border Foods. “It is a creative, technological solution for a faster, contactless experience for as many Taco Bell fans as possible and is poised to be the future of quick-service dining.”
Taco Bell Defy aims to reduce service times to two minutes or less, all while providing fans with a fun, easy and seamless drive-thru experience. Regardless of how customers order, Taco Bell Defy has four lanes to accommodate them:
Pre-orders: Customers who order via the Taco Bell app will score skip-the-line service. For ultimate ease and convenience, the Taco Bell App can be downloaded ahead of time by visiting the Apple App Store or Google Play.
Delivery drivers: For those ordering through a third-party delivery partner, drivers will be able to process orders with the goal of providing an even faster delivery time.
Traditional drive-thru: For those who prefer to drop in for their favorite menu items, there’s one lane dedicated solely for this purpose.
Minneapolis-based Vertical Works Inc. merged innovation, design and manufacturing to concept and build much of what fans can expect from Defy, and in doing so reinvented the drive-thru experience. Vertical Works is powered by WORKSHOP and PD Instore.
“We applied our innovative approach to problem solving to create a brand-new way for consumers to access fast food,” said Josh Hanson, co-founder of Vertical Works and CEO and founder of WORKSHOP. “We know today’s consumer expects a convenient and memorable experience, and the Taco Bell Defy concept delivers on both.”
“We were excited to partner with Border Foods and Taco Bell to bring the Taco Bell Defy concept to life,” said Mike Strommen, co-founder of Vertical Works and CEO of PD Instore. “The Border Foods team was facing challenges with streamlining the journey from order to meal hand-off, and the Vertical Works team presented a solution to not only address this, but also deliver a more impactful customer experience overall. Taco Bell Defy’s unique design combined with innovative technology delivers food to consumers faster and more efficiently.”
From digital check-in screens for mobile order customers’ unique QR codes, to a two-way audio and video technology service for customers to talk to team members on the second floor, Taco Bell Defy boasts many features that could show up in future Taco Bell restaurants in the US. In the meantime, Border Foods and Taco Bell are considering potential retrofits that could be made to several of Taco Bell Defy’s neighboring restaurants.
“Taco Bell Defy is an incredible innovation for our brand, and one that’s meeting our consumer in a really unique way. For decades we’ve been committed to providing a fast, safe and friendly drive-thru experience; now with our bold goal of creating a two minute or less drive-thru experience for customers of this concept, Taco Bell Defy is the future,” said Mike Grams, Taco Bell President and Global COO. “We’re thankful for our incredible 36-year partnership with Border Foods and feel like Taco Bell Defy is a culmination of years of success between our teams, along with the expertise of local partners like Vertical Works who helped make this possible.”
In 1979, Border Foods founders Jeff and Lee Engler opened their first Mexican restaurant called Los Primos. Little did they know, 40 years later, they’d be at the helm of one of the largest Taco Bell franchisees in the nation. At Border Foods, tenure means everything to us. And we think 40 years in the industry is something to celebrate! So, on Oct. 25, we surprised Jeff and Lee with a party at the Border Foods headquarters.
Building a great team takes trust, and developing that trust takes time and loyalty. At Border Foods, we attribute so much of our business success to our teams’ commitment. Our Border Foods 2018 Recognition Rally embodied all the great things we look for in excellent hospitality and pristine restaurants. And we’re not just serving tacos. We’re providing an experience for team members that feels more like coming home. Below, find the year’s accomplishments:
Metrics
Border Foods is bringing 70+ employees to Mexico this year on the Best of the Best Trip.
2 restaurants (Robert St., MN – 2395 & Golden Valley, MN 2421) were both recognized for their outstanding sales over $3 Million!
43 other restaurants in the company achieved 2018 annual sales of over $2 Million
We have a wealth of tenure at Border Foods, especially thankful for Tina Pufahl (35 years of service), Joyce Cox & Vicky Marshall (25 years of service)
Speed matters. Last year, we had 5 restaurants running under 3:00 DT SWS; 20 additional restaurants ran below 3:30 in 2018.
Of the Year Awards
As a family of nearly 5,000 team members today, the Of the Year Awards honor just a few who stand out above the rest. These important team members understand people development, have a solid history of internal promotions and show they can master metrics. 2018 of the year awards recipients included:
General Manager of the Year: Alfredo Briones, Bloomington, MN, 3333
Area Coach of the Year: Deb Fraser, Area 32
Region Coach of the Year: Pam Hare, Region 1
Circle of Excellence Award
Vera Sanchez, Stinson, MN, 2384
Heart of Border Foods Winners
This award was built to honor the traits we valued in Carol Williams and inspire all team members to live and breathe the culture of Border Foods. We recognize team members who exemplify the attitude, dedication and family culture that Carol embodied. The core principles that make up the heart of this award include, development, achievement and culture. Every Heart of Border Foods recipient personifies a family driven culture in all aspects of work, grows team members both personally and professionally, executes long and short-term goals and exceeds business metrics. Congratulations to our Heart of Border Foods winners!
Brian Davies, Facilities Director
Ken Lund, Region Coach
Congratulations to all our team members who received recognition for 2018 accomplishments. Bring on 2019!
