LOUISVILLE, KY. — Sean Tresvant has been promoted to chief executive officer of the Taco Bell division at Yum! Brands Inc., effective Jan. 1, 2024. He will succeed Mark King, who will retire at the end of the year.

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. Over the past several months he has overseen the brand’s strategy, food innovation, architecture and design and global communications functions, as well as Taco Bell’s international business.

Prior to joining Taco Bell, Tresvant spent more than 16 years in leadership roles at Nike, including chief marketing officer of the Jordan brand. Earlier, he was executive brand director at Time Inc. — Sports Illustrated. He also worked for five years as a senior brand manager at PepsiCo Inc.

“Sean is a visionary business leader and best-in-class brand builder who is driving transformative R.E.D. (relevant, easy, distinctive) sales-powering efforts, from omni-channel initiatives to digital customer touchpoints, to accelerate growth and further elevate and differentiate the Taco Bell fan and team member experience,” said David Gibbs, CEO of Yum! Brands. “Sean is laser focused on keeping our powerhouse Taco Bell brand at the leading edge of culture and redefining innovation in the industry. That’s why he is the ideal executive to continue successfully executing Taco Bell’s long-term global growth strategies and take them to the next level in partnership with the brand’s strong and accomplished leadership team and incredible franchisees. Sean, Mark and I will continue to work closely together over the coming months to ensure a seamless transition.”