Franchising

Taco Bell to break ground on Defy concept in Minnesota

Photo provided.

August 12, 2021

Taco Bell is set to break ground on its newest concept, Taco Bell Defy, in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, later this month. The 3,000-square-foot cutting-edge design will open in 2022 and features a two-story model licensed by Vertical Works Inc. The concept has speed at its core with four drive-thru lanes, according to a press release.

The Defy concept was developed in partnership with Minneapolis-based Vertical Works Inc., a design company that merges manufacturing and construction to concept and build industry-leading solutions for quick-serve restaurants, retail, healthcare and more. In 2020, Border Foods, one of the largest, privately held Taco Bell franchisees in America, enlisted Vertical Works Inc. to help them create an industry-provoking restaurant with a leading design. With an existing 35-year partnership, Taco Bell and Border Foods will partner on its 230th restaurant and 82nd new restaurant build.

Three of the four lanes in the Defy concept are devoted to mobile or delivery order pickups, allowing customers to skip the traditional quick service ordering line. These three lanes will supplement one traditional lane, easing the flow of traffic and ensuring a speedy experience. The Defy concept will feature digital check-in screens, allowing mobile order customers to scan in their order via a unique QR code and then pull forward to pick up. All of this will help Taco Bell Defy's footprint, which is smaller or equal to existing store footprints, serve more customers.

"In 2015, we created the Taco Bell Cantina concept with an open kitchen environment in urban markets. In 2020, we introduced the Go Mobile concept much earlier than anticipated with the help of quick collaboration with franchisees just like Border Foods," Mike Grams, Taco Bell's president and global COO, said in the release. "Partnering with our franchisees to test new concepts is a huge unlock of learning for us. What we learn from the test of this new Defy concept may help shape future Taco Bell restaurants."