Mexican food franchises serve traditional Mexican cuisines, traditional dishes with contemporary twists, and American-based Tex-Mex dishes. Whatever your style of Mexican cuisine is, there’s a Mexican food franchise out there for you!
Popular Mexican food franchises include: Baja Fresh, Costa Vida, Del Taco, El Pollo Loco, Jimboy's Tacos, Go Burrito, Moe’s Southwest Grill, Mucho Burrito, Pancheros Mexican Grill, Qdoba, Rusty Taco, Taco Bell, Taco John’s, and Taco Time.
The Taco: The Star of the Mexican Food Industry
Though Mexican food franchises serve much more than just this one item, there’s little doubt that the superstar to the universe of the industry is the taco, a traditional Mexican street food that makes its way into the hearts—and stomachs—of millions, if not billions, of people around the world daily.
Tacos consist of a small hand-sized corn or wheat tortilla topped with a filling. The filling can have numerous varieties, including beef, pork, chicken, steak, seafood, beans, various vegetables, and cheese. In addition, condiments such as salsa, guacamole, or sour cream can be added as well. The tortilla is then folded around the filling and eaten by hand.
But again, Mexican food franchises serve more than just tacos, however. On the menu in the average Mexican food franchise can also be:
- Bowls
- Burgers
- Burritos
- Churros
- Fries
- Nachos
- Quesadillas
- Rice
- Salads
- Tamales
- Tostadas
Origins of the Most Popular Mexican Food Franchise
There’s not much question that the most popular Mexican food franchise in the United States, if not the world, is Taco Bell. But did you know that Taco Bell owes a significant part of its original menu to a small family diner?
Taco Bell’s “Mexican-inspired” menu can be traced to Mitla Café, a still in operation Mexican family diner, which stood across the street from one of founder Glen Bell’s previous ventures: a hamburger stand in San Bernardino. According to relatives of the original owners, Lucia Rodriguez and Vicente Montaño, Bell would regularly come over and ask Montaño several things about how he ran his business, including how Montaño made his tacos.
Future of the Mexican Food Franchise Industry
There’s no reason to believe that the industry won’t continue with the upward trajectory it was on prior to the growth hiatus caused by dining room restrictions necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic. In fact, many of these franchises were already equipped with robust drive-thru, take-out and/or delivery options that mitigated the potential effect of the pandemic.
According to figures posted on Statista, the market value for the Mexican restaurant industry in the United States was estimated at approximately $62.24 billion in 2019, reflecting the consistent increases seen over the previous several years. The market share of the industry did fall by approximately 12.3% in 2020, due in large part to the stay-at-home restrictions implemented due to the coronavirus pandemic. However, the industry is forecasted to reach nearly $67 billion in market value in 2021, an increase of approximately 7% over 2019.
Further, IBISWorld says the following about the immediate future for Mexican restaurants in the United States:
<blockquote>The Mexican restaurants industry stands to benefit from the improvement in consumer spending over the five years, despite a strong setback amid the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic. As Americans return to work and household incomes improve, spending at restaurants will likely grow. Demand is expected to be further bolstered by consumer demand to return to restaurants in the aftermath of the pandemic's stay-at-home orders. As a result, Mexican restaurants will likely benefit from both greater foot traffic and higher average checks.</blockquote>
Initial Investment and Opening Costs for Mexican Food Franchises
The amount necessary to open a Mexican food franchise can vary widely depending on the unique business system and execution requirements.
The exact opening costs for a Mexican food franchise of a specific franchise brand can depend on many factors, including but not limited to: the franchise fee, land and building costs, training expenses (such as travel and living expenses, not the actual training courses), grand opening advertising and marketing costs, and more.
One of the most significant variables in how much it costs to open a Mexican food franchise is the type of franchise being opened and how big it is. Commonly, the two types of food franchise offered to new franchisees to build are traditional and non-traditional. Traditional franchises are usually the biggest option. They are typically standalone buildings where the service of the franchise is the only business offering. Non-traditional franchises are smaller, and typically located within another building like an airport or gas station. (Note: Sometimes food court locations are also considered traditional locations.) Other franchise types include kiosks, food trucks, and ghost kitchens.
The franchise profiles on our website will present you with a basic range for the initial investment or minimum cash required to open a franchise. But when it comes to finding out the details of an initial investment, the franchise disclosure document (FDD) is the best place to look. Franchisors offer itemized estimates in their FDD based upon their experience establishing, and in some cases operating, units.
Keep in mind these estimates are just that, though — an estimate. Prospective franchisees should review the figures presented with a business advisor, taking into consideration their unique circumstances, before making the decision to enter into a franchise agreement.
Top Benefits of Being an Mexican Food Franchise Owner
The benefits of owning a franchise can be numerous vs. independent operation. Here are a few of the top benefits for those who decide to own a Mexican food franchise instead of going at it alone.
Name Recognition: While people sometimes do want to try something new, most people tend to be creatures of habit and trust companies that they have some kind of familiarity with. Franchises tend to have established brand names that, in many instances, have been around for years. If you buy a Mexican food franchise, you will be given the right to associate your business with that franchise company's name, trademarks, and logo.
Training and Support: A popular feature with all franchises is the training provided. While in business, franchisees will have access to the franchisor’s operations manual, computer systems, and other items designed to help you successfully manage your Mexican food franchise.
Advertising: Getting your name out there can be expensive and sometimes it can be hard to know where to spend your advertising and marketing budget. With a franchise, national advertising is typically done by the franchisor. In addition, though local advertising is generally up to you, you’ll have guidelines in place to help guide you.
You can also check out many more Food Franchises here on Franchise Direct, such as: