Taco Bell announced that CEO Mark King is retiring at the end of the year, and the brand is promoting from within to replace him. Sean Tresvant, global chief brand and strategy officer at Taco Bell, will step into the top executive role on Jan. 1, 2024.

As CEO, he will assume global responsibility for driving Taco Bell's growth strategies, franchise operations and overall performance, reporting to Yum Brands CEO David Gibbs. Tresvant joined Taco Bell in January 2022 as global chief brand officer. He was promoted to an expanded role as global chief brand and strategy officer earlier this year, focused on developing perspective and ambition for long-term global growth.

In his current role, Tresvant has overseen the brand's strategy, food innovation, architecture and design and global communications functions as well as the Taco Bell International business. During his time with Taco Bell, he set a "powerful strategic framework that has created iconic moments within culture and driven massive awareness and buzz for the brand," including several high-profile celebrity partnerships and the return of the fan favorite Mexican Pizza. Prior to joining Taco Bell, Tresvant spent more than 15 years in leadership roles at Nike including chief marketing officer of the Jordan Brand.

King joined Taco Bell in 2019 after successfully leading global sporting goods businesses with adidas. Under King's leadership, the Taco Bell business prioritized on-trend innovation, leaned into everyday value and grew from strength to strength, finishing 2022 with same-store sales growth of 8%, the release states.