A Red’s Burritos Case Study in Sustained Growth

When Mike Adair turned in his final MBA project, a business plan inspired by his wife’s burrito recipe, he had no idea it would become a defining brand in the frozen aisle. But, seventeen years later, Red’s is the #1 premium burrito and breakfast sandwich brand in the U.S., built on an uncompromising commitment to quality, ethical sourcing and flavor-first cooking.

Red’s first became an Orso client in 2018, and in 2023, Red’s engaged us to elevate the brand from a strong product-led business to a culturally relevant, category-defining leader, building sustained awareness, amplifying its founder story and driving real impact at shelf.  

We developed a fully integrated communications strategy designed to drive both brand equity and retail velocity, anchored by founder-led storytelling and product-driven visibility. Within this overarching strategy, we leveraged five tactics that each resulted in meaningful impacts for the brand.

#1: Tell the Story

First, we put Mike’s story and the brand’s founding philosophy front and center: telling the story of a founder who has never compromised on ingredients, quality, or the cooking process, reinforcing Red’s authority as the premium standard in frozen.

Our Approach: We secured defining features in Forbes (From Homemade Burritos to Frozen Food Icon: The Journey of Red’s) and Entrepreneur (The ‘Hustle’ He Started Out of His Station Wagon Became a Nationwide Business That’s About to Hit $300 Million: ‘Everything We Do Is Pretty Simple’), a Startup to Storefront episode positioning Red’s as the #1 premium burrito brand in the US, and a Frozen & Refrigerated Buyer centerfold story celebrating the brand’s 15th anniversary and Mike’s vision for the future of the freezer aisle.

#2: Meet Consumers Where They Are

At the same time, we secured a consistent stream of product-focused media coverage across food, wellness, and lifestyle verticals, ensuring Red’s showed up in front of consumers who were actively making purchase decisions.

Our Approach: Working with lifestyle contributors and media-friendly registered dieticians, Red’s was featured in back-to-back Good Morning America segments in August 2023 and August 2024 as part of their back-to-school coverage focused on the benefits of a high-protein breakfast. The segments reached millions of families exactly when they were stocking up, cementing Red’s as the go-to premium option for busy mornings.

We also secured consistent, high-visibility coverage in outlets including Allrecipes, Epicurious, Business Insider, Eat This Not That, EatingWell, Food Republic, Tasting Table, Parade, and Martha Stewart Living, as well as key trade publications including Frozen & Refrigerated Buyer, NOSH, and Food Business News.

#3: Leverage Influencers

To directly support sales, we built a retailer-specific influencer strategy, activating partners aligned with key accounts including Costco, Kroger, Walmart and Target. These campaigns were designed not just for awareness, but to demonstrate investment and enthusiasm to the retailers, along with driving in-store demand and sell-through during priority retail moments. We also leveraged lifestyle influencers to share the Red’s brand message and points of difference, to drive third-party credibility for the products. These campaigns supported sales while growing the brand’s engagement on social media.

Our Approach: We built and executed a retailer-aligned influencer program deploying dedicated Costco, Kroger, Walmart, and Target partners to drive awareness and velocity at shelf, including campaigns around new product launches, seasonal promotions, and key retail moments.

#4: Stay Current and Meet the Moment

We also ensured Red’s remained consistently relevant by tapping into timely cultural and seasonal moments, from back-to-school and new product launches to unexpected, high-impact creative campaigns that reinforced the brand’s personality.

Our Approach: We supported the brand’s marketing campaign through media relations, earning 8 placements including a feature in Ad Age and a spot on their weekly roundup of the most creative marketing campaigns, as well as organized food drop at the TODAY Show. Separately, we landed Red’s in Mindy Kaling’s list of must-haves in Pop Sugar — all proof that even an established frozen food brand can break through the clutter with the right creative angle.

#5: Be Ready for the Unexpected

When a supplier recall emerged in October 2024, we stepped in as a real strategic partner during a high-stakes business moment, leading messaging across media, consumers, and retail partners, as well as internal communications to employees, the board and other key stakeholders. Most importantly, following the recall, we worked with the team to implement a formal crisis communications infrastructure, ensuring they were prepared for the unexpected, should it occur in the future. 

Our Approach: We moved quickly: drafting media response language, advising on internal, consumer and retailer communications, and proactively updating media and coverage to protect the brand during a critical moment. Following the recall, we worked with the team to develop and maintain a formal crisis communications plan, ensuring Red’s was prepared and equipped to respond swiftly and strategically should a similar, or completely different, crisis occur in the future.

Our Results:

Over the course of the engagement, Red’s has earned more than 1400 media placements with a combined audience of nearly 18.6 billion and more than $173 million in advertising equivalency, alongside 120+ million social impressions driven by paid and organic influencer partnerships.

Through a strategic combination of founder storytelling, product visibility, retail-aligned influencer strategy, and culturally relevant moments, Orso helped evolve Red’s from the biggest brand you’ve never heard of in grocery stores into a recognized leader shaping the future of the frozen food category, driving both sustained awareness and meaningful business impact.

Is your CPG brand at an inflection point? Let our PR experts share your story so you can meet this moment. Get in touch today.