Taco Bell CMO Reveals Why Gen Z Is Flocking to the Brand’s Retirement Community

For one weekend in August, a group of people craving rejuvenation will go on a retreat with a twist. After playing pickleball and crocheting, they can attend a sound bath and zen out as sound waves usher them into deep states of relaxation. 

That sound they hear as they meditate? It’s the signature bong of Taco Bell.   

The QSR brand is embracing the slow life at its weekend getaway called The Cantinas, which takes place Aug. 17-18 in San Diego, Calif. With shades of The Villages, a Florida community for senior citizens that is renowned both for its vast size and extensive activity schedule, The Cantinas is a destination “where everyone can live like a retiree, regardless of age,” according to the brand.

Besides the sound bath session and pickleball, an array of activities will be on the menu at Taco Bell’s early retirement community, from aerobics and tennis to knitting lessons and painting classes. You can crochet your own Taco Bell potholder, play a few rounds of golf, play bingo and enjoy an early bird dinner before turning in by 8 p.m.

The event is only open to Taco Bell rewards members, but influencers such as Terri Joe and a group of senior TikTokers called Retirement House will also be present. 

When Taco Bell announced The Cantinas in July, both the regular tickets and waitlist for weekend passes sold out in under three minutes, according to CMO Taylor Montgomery. 

The demand showed that Taco Bell had struck a chord far beyond older retirees who are typically associated with such leisure activities. In fact, “our muse for The Cantinas was Gen Z,” Montgomery told ADWEEK. 

Both The Cantinas and other recent marketing are part of Taco Bell’s efforts to broaden its image beyond being a late-night destination and reach younger audiences. 

“We’re in a position where we’re thinking about what ‘Live Más’ [the brand’s slogan, which translates to ‘Live More’ in English] means for the next generation of consumers,” Montgomery said. “We want to inspire the next generational cult of Taco Bell.”

Catering to niche interests

A key insight about Generation Z inspired Taco Bell to set up The Cantinas: They prefer to “turn in” rather than “turn up.” 

Some studies have found that Gen Z are going out and partying less. For example, GlobalData’s Q4 2023 consumer survey revealed that 21% of Gen Z planned on socializing less frequently with friends and family outside the home, up from 17% who said so at the beginning of the year. 

“We decided to lean in on the insight that Gen Z loves things that we think only older generations love,” Montgomery said. “Early retirement is something we all aspire to.” 

Taco Bell is far from the first brand to cater to Gen Z, but a lot of brands get this audience wrong, said Montgomery. 

“This is a generation that’s so self-assured in some ways and isn’t afraid to show who they are, regardless of how niche that may be,” she said. “A lot of brands think they need to change or push that, but for us it’s embracing that.”

Not just late night

Gen Z’s niche, sometimes low-key interests also dovetail with another goal of Taco Bell’s to shift its perception as only a guilty pleasure, late-night destination. 

In March, an ad created by Deutsch LA had actor Jason Sudeikis challenging people who posted things on social media like, “Taco Bell only really hits after midnight.” 

“Does it hit or does it not hit?” the Ted Lasso star says to a guy named Howie who chows down on a chicken taco in broad daylight. 

The following month in Canada, Taco Bell’s “Receipt Redemption” asked social media users to post photos of their late-night receipts from the chain and trade them for free items from its new Chicken Cantina menu during the day. 

Through such campaigns and menu innovations like the Chicken Cantina range, “we’re trying to highlight sides of the brand that always existed but weren’t always spotlighted,” Montgomery said. “‘Live Más’ is very broad but specific, and everyone across different generations has a different definition of it.” 

Experiences for superfans

Taco Bell is no stranger to over-the-top branded experiences, such as when it opened a hotel called The Bell in 2019. Located in Palm Springs, Calif. the pop-up hotel came complete with food tastings, synchronized swimmers in hot-sauce suits and a poolside concert. 

And earlier this year during Super Bowl weekend in Las Vegas, Taco Bell hosted its first Live Más Live event, which included tastings with chefs, music performances from the likes of Omar Apollo, and the Bell Awards honoring fans in categories like Menu Hack of the Year.  

Taco Bell plans to host its second Live Más Live next year. 

All of its experiences, including The Cantinas, are “designed to showcase our menu but also to live on social, mainly TikTok,” Montgomery explained. The brand spends the majority of its paid media budget on digital and connected channels, he added. 

As with the rest of its marketing hits, including a campaign with Doja Cat heralding the return of Mexican Pizza, Taco Bell’s marketing is inspired by its superfans, who are “the biggest evangelists for the brand,” Montgomery said. 

Now, as it looks to recruit that next generation of evangelists, it will continue to take cues from its biggest fans, whether that’s an early retirement community or something else. According to Montgomery, such efforts will only be successful if they keep that authentically Taco Bell flavor: light-hearted, unfiltered and a little bit spicy. 

“Gen Z consumers want to have a two-way conversation with the brand. They want you to be real, unfiltered and raw,” Montgomery said. “The Cantinas shows we’re not taking ourselves too seriously. We’re in on the joke.”