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A Legend is Born
Richard Montañez was born in Mexico but grew up in Guasti, a town close to Ontario, California -
The 25 Cent Burrito
Richard has been in the business since third grade. According to his book: "There I was with this burrito and with everyone staring at me. I put it back in my bag and hid it. The next day, when he asked his mom to make him “a bologna sandwich and a cupcake like the other kids,” she instead packed him two burritos: one for him to eat and one for him to use to make a friend. By the end of the week, the seven-year-old entrepreneur was selling burritos for $0.25 each." -
Dropping Out
Dropping out in 4th grade, he never learned how to read or write. Instead of going to school he decided to do what his dad, grandpa, and great grandpa had done before him. Pick grapes in the vineyard. "After struggling to pick up on basic reading and writing in school, Montañez dropped out and worked a series of low-paying jobs, including slaughtering chickens and gardening. He was working at a car wash when a friend came by and told him that Frito-Lay was hiring." -
The Big Break
In 1976 he got a job at Frito-Lay as a janitor. He was only 18 when he got this job. At this time, he couldn't read or write and his wife had to fill out the application out for him. He only earned $2.10 an hour -
Hot Cheeto In The Making
While there is no specific date on when he got the idea, "the idea for Flamin’ Hot Cheetos came to him when, one day, a machine broke in the assembly line and a batch of Cheetos didn’t get dusted with their standard orange cheese powder. Montañez took the plain Cheetos home and experimented with putting chili powder on them, an idea inspired by a street vendor in his neighborhood, who made Mexican grilled corn with lime and chili." -
Hot Cheeto Formula
Richard and his wife finally make the perfect recipe. Richard makes a call to the CEO. Though he is just a janitor he intrigued the businessmen and they gave him a chance to give a presentation on the product. -
A Boy, A Burrito and a Cookie
In 2013, Richard published his first book. It was about the biggest thing that is stopping you in life. Fear. In the book it talks about how you can get over it and achieve your dreams. -
The Obamas
Richard has been invited to the white house numerous times and has even had dinner with the Obamas. -
Motivational Speaker
Richard goes around the country talking to kids in schools, colleges and other places talking about his hardships and how if he could become CEO of the company he cleaned then you can too. -
Hot Cheeto Craze
Hot Cheetos went viral on social media with many different food ideas such as mac and cheese with hot cheetos, elote with hot cheeto, hot cheeto pizza and more! -
Hispanic Culture and Hot Cheetos
I think hot cheetos have really become a staple in the hispanic community. The spice, the story behind the cheeto too. I think hispanic communities are the majority of the people that buy these.
