Taco Bell Fashion: A Hit or Miss?

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Forever 21 and Taco Bell released a clothing collection on Oct. 11. The collection offers comedic pieces for Taco Bell fans and those with quirky styles

Christopher Collado, Staff Writer

Fast food and fast fashion collide in Forever 21’s new collection in collaboration with Taco Bell. While an unlikely duo, the department store and fast food restaurant teamed up to create clothing released on Wednesday, Oct. 11. Forever 21 x Taco Bell isn’t the first restaurant and fashion collaboration. Previous examples of food and clothing partnerships include Coca-Cola x Adidas in 2002, CFDA x Starbucks in 2011, McDonald’s x Moschino in 2014 and The Meatball Shop x Vans in 2016. Fashion is art and anything can be an influence for the creation of clothes, even food.

As the newest fashion and food collaboration, the Forever 21 x Taco Bell line has been receiving a lot of attention. The clothing line offers clothing for plus-size and non plus-size women as well as for girls. It also offers outfits for men, but the options are pretty limited. The collection includes shirts that say “Too Much Sauce” with images of tacos, naturally. There are body suits that say “Fire Don’t Wait Up” and “Hot Born Saucy.” The collection also has hoodies with the iconic Taco Bell logo. The fashion line also offers phone cases with tacos and sauce packets on them for the iPhone 6, 6s, 7, 6 Plus and 7 Plus.

While Forever 21 does appeal to some customers with the Taco Bell collection, it’s not for those who are trying to be fashionable. One could argue that the McDonald’s x Moschino collaboration was high fashion, but the Forever 21 x Taco Bell collaboration is comedic clothing. It isn’t couture to wear a bodysuit that looks like a Taco Bell sauce packet, but it is humorous. The shirts with taco illustrations come off as childish. The men’s and women’s jackets don’t incorporate a fast food brand fashionably, as it just looks like they are Taco Bell uniforms. The collection seems to only be appropriate for children, looking painfully juvenile.

For anyone who has a quirky sense of style or is an extreme fanatic of Taco Bell, this collection could be a staple in your wardrobe. The collection has a wide range of articles of clothing in a variety of colors, making the clothing appropriate for all seasons. More fashionable customers, however, should pass. Forever 21 does a good job at selling fashionable clothes at affordable prices and Taco Bell does a good job creating Mexican fast food, but the two do not make a dynamic duo.

You can check out the Forever 21 x Taco Bell collection on the Forever 21 website.

A version of this article appeared in the Monday, Oct. 16 print edition. Email Christopher Collado at [email protected].