Background

Tacala Companies (Tacala) is the largest Taco Bell franchisee, with 350+ locations across seven states and growing. When we made our initial investment, Tacala’s founder Don Ghareeb was looking for a partner who could thoughtfully navigate the transition from family ownership and bring in resources to support the company’s growth. In a narrow process that prioritized fit and reputation, ACP stood out as being uniquely collaborative and aligned with the company’s “Here to Serve” principle.

Vision

When we partnered with Tacala in December 2012, we had strong alignment on building a platform that could deliver consistent growth without losing its focus on customers, employees, and local communities.

• Collaborative and Partnership-Oriented Approach. We focused on building a foundation of trust, transparency, and collaboration between our team, management, and the franchisor. More tactically, we partnered to develop a value creation plan that felt achievable and consistent with each party’s goals for the business.
• Sustainable Growth Orientation. Tacala was looking not just for a source of capital for growth, but also for a partner to support business building. Our firm’s orientation towards long-term growth allowed us to invest in back-office capabilities and eschew quick results in favor of setting up a flywheel for multi-year organic growth.
• Significant Market Opportunity. Our experience in real estate development, M&A, and other growth levers coupled with the Tacala team’s operational capabilities allowed us to collectively tap into the extensive growth opportunity for the business. We focused on creating lasting growth for the platform through a combination of new unit development, same-store sales growth, and acquisitions.

Results

In more than 10 years of partnership, Tacala has doubled its store count from 160 to over 350, quadrupled its earnings, and continued to invest in its restaurant and corporate teams. This growth has come through a combination of durable organic growth and four strategic add-on acquisitions.

Beyond its track record of growth, Tacala continues to be a leader in customer satisfaction and a key partner to its franchisor. In recognition of this operational excellence, Tacala has received the Glen Bell Award, an honor bestowed upon the Taco Bell franchisees that best demonstrate Taco Bell’s values and high achievement in store operations.

In its local communities, the company has also continued to model its “Here to Serve” principle with over $4M of annual giving, supported by ACP. The company has provided this support through the Tacala Foundation, the Taco Bell Foundation’s Round Up program, and the ACP Foundation – ACP’s charitable arm that partners with organizations aligning with the firm’s mission.