What you need to know:

• Andrew Howie has joined Taco Bell as Chief Marketing Officer.
• He is joining a quick service retail business that is looking to dramatically expand its footprint in Australia.

Andrew Howie, the former Brand and Advertising chief at Amazon, has joined Taco Bell as Chief Marketing Officer.

Howie is a marketing veteran, having spent four and a half years at Meat and Livestock Australia and almost a year at Westpac as Head of Advertising.

“I’m excited to share that after 4 years at Amazon delighting customers and growing myself professionally, it’s time to jump onboard a new rocket ship,” Howie wrote on LinkedIn.
“This is my first week at Taco Bell Australia. Growing this amazing brand and business is going to be an awesome journey. I certainly can’t wait.”

Taco Bell doesn’t have much of a presence in Australia at the moment, having arrived in 2017 and grown to 34 stories in that time. But that appears to be set to change. The company has announced plans to partner with Collins Foods to open more than 50 more stores over the next three years.

Taco Bell is a subsidiary of Yum! Brands, Inc, a listed company on the New York Stock Exchange.