---
title: "Franchises Like Taco Bell Are Stealing This Strategy from Nike — And It’s Working"
url: https://burnaze.com/article/df540b13-27ba-45ce-a66d-77a2c26a2f7b
source: "Entrepreneur Franchise"
original_url: https://www.entrepreneur.com/buying-a-franchise/franchises-like-taco-bell-are-stealing-this-strategy-from-nike-and-its-working
author: "Jonathan Small"
category: "Mexican"
industry: "Restaurants"
segment: "Mexican"
published: 2026-05-19T14:45:00.000Z
modified: 2026-10-31T13:19:11.188Z
image: https://www.entrepreneur.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/05/taco-bell-marketing-0526_g2272274090.jpg
---

# Franchises Like Taco Bell Are Stealing This Strategy from Nike — And It’s Working

**TL;DR:** Taco Bell CEO Sean Tresvant is using a marketing strategy called 'drop culture', inspired by his 15 years at Nike, to drive loyalty and digital engagement. Other chains like Wendy's, Chipotle, and Pizza Hut are also adopting similar strategies, offering exclusive deals and limited-edition releases to their loyalty program members.

*By Jonathan Small, originally published in Entrepreneur Franchise on 2026-05-19. [Read the original](https://www.entrepreneur.com/buying-a-franchise/franchises-like-taco-bell-are-stealing-this-strategy-from-nike-and-its-working).*

## Story

To stand out, chains are borrowing ‘drops’ from sneaker culture, serving up merch and food to restaurant fans.

Taco Bell CEO Sean Tresvant spent 15 years at Nike, and now he’s bringing the fast-food chain a marketing trick he learned from the sneaker giant: product drops.

The company launched Taco Tuesday Drops in its loyalty program, offering exclusive deals to members every Tuesday before the general public can access them. The strategy comes straight from sneaker culture, where brands like Nike SNKRS and Adidas Confirmed create hype through limited-edition releases.

Now other chains are dropping their own versions left and right, according to Restaurant Business. Wendy’s just added Rewards Drops featuring limited-edition swag every Wednesday. Chipotle reintroduced monthly free food drops. Pizza Hut’s Space Jam merchandise drops sold out completely. El Pollo Loco’s Loco Friday Drops drove loyalty member frequency up 13% and spending up 17% year-over-year.

Why does it work? Nearly half of consumers say they want access to exclusive products that are hard to obtain. When everyone has a loyalty program, artificial scarcity becomes the differentiator.

## Entities

- QSR (sector)
- Entrepreneur (publication)
- Taco Bell (company)
- Wendy's (company)
- marketing strategy (topic)
- Pizza Hut (company)
- loyalty program (topic)
- Chipotle (company)
- El Pollo Loco (company)
- qsr trends (topic)
- Nike (company)
- Jonathan Small (person)

---
Originally reported by Jonathan Small, Entrepreneur Franchise (https://www.entrepreneur.com/buying-a-franchise/franchises-like-taco-bell-are-stealing-this-strategy-from-nike-and-its-working). Summarized by Burnaze (https://burnaze.com/article/df540b13-27ba-45ce-a66d-77a2c26a2f7b).