Taco Bell’s future in Australia saved after Collins Foods sells to parent company affiliate, Restaurant Brands Australia

Taco Bell’s future in Australia has been saved after a major operator of the Mexican-themed chain agreed to sell 20 of its 27 stores.

Fast food operator Collins Foods, which runs 280 of the 800 KFCs in Australia, in April 2025 announced it would sell or close its 27 Taco Bell stores within 12 months.

This came as Taco Bell struggled to compete with local Mexican-themed chains Guzman y Gomez and Zambrero.

Collins Foods on Tuesday announced it has agreed to sell 20 of the Taco Bell stores to Restaurant Brands Australia and an affiliate of the chain’s parent company Yum! Brands.

The remaining seven stores will be shut down, including six in Queensland and one in Victoria.

It remains unclear how much Collins Foods sold the store for, however, the company noted it was at a “nominal amount”.

Collins Foods expects to lose between $1m and $2m for the one-off cost of closing the remaining seven stores.

Taco Bell Australia’s general manager David Mantellini was optimistic about the future of the Mexican-themed chain despite its struggle in the local market.

“We strongly believe in this market and are excited about the future with a clear focus on growing the brand to bring more Taco Bell restaurants to more Australians,” Mr Mantellini said in a statement.

“This new partnership with (Restaurant Brands Australia) reinforces that we are here for the long term.”

The sale is subject to Restaurant Brands Australia and Taco Bell finalising the terms of the partnership agreement and regulatory approvals.

Collins Foods will continue to operate the 20 stores until the deal is finalised.

All workers at the impacted stores will be offered positions under the new ownership.

Collins Foods CEO Xavier Simonet said selling the Taco Bell stores will allow the fast-food operator to focus on its latest move to purchase eight KFCs in Bavaria and Germany for $52m.

“This will enable Collins Foods to focus on our core KFC business in Australia and Europe, including accelerating profitable development in Germany,” Mr Simonet said.

Prior to Collins Foods’ stint with Taco Bell began in Australia in 2017, there was an attempt in the 1980s to bring the fast-food chain Down Under.

Taco Bell was ordered to change its name after the owner of an Australian restaurant called “Taco Bell’s Casa” sued the restaurant.

It was then revived in Australia in 1997 before running out of steam in 2005.