Richard Montanez, the son of Mexican immigrants, grew up in poverty in California. Despite struggling with English and dropping out of school, Richard worked as a janitor at a Frito-Lay plant. One day, he noticed that Frito-Lay didn't have any spicy or hot products, particularly for the Latino market. He experimented with adding chili to Cheetos and came up with a recipe for Flamin' Hot Cheetos. Richard called the CEO of Frito-Lay to pitch his idea, and despite initial skepticism, he was given the opportunity to present it to top executives. With the help of his wife, Richard prepared for the presentation and confidently pitched his idea, which eventually became one of the most successful products in Frito-Lay history, making the company billions of dollars. Today, Richard is PepsiCo's vice president of multicultural sales and marketing.
Here are the key facts extracted from the text:
1. Richard Montanez was a high school dropout who could barely read or write in English.
2. Richard was the son of Mexican immigrants and was raised in Guasti, California.
3. Richard lived in a one-bedroom apartment with his mother, father, grandfather, and 10 siblings.
4. Richard worked in the fields and took on odd jobs, including slaughtering chickens and washing cars.
5. Richard got a job as a janitor at a Frito-Lay plant in Rancho Cucamonga, California.
6. Richard was paid $4 an hour as a janitor and received insurance benefits and social mobility.
7. Richard noticed that Frito-Lay didn't have any spicy or hot products for the Latino market.
8. Richard came up with the idea of putting chili on a Cheeto.
9. Richard took some undusted Cheetos home and spiced them up with his wife.
10. Richard's family and friends loved the spicy Cheetos, so he decided to turn his idea into a product.
11. Richard called the Frito-Lay CEO, Roger Enrico, to pitch his idea.
12. Richard was told to give a presentation to the company's top executives.
13. Richard went to the library to learn about marketing strategies and prepared for the presentation.
14. Richard delivered his presentation with confidence and impressed the executives.
15. Richard's idea, Flamin' Hot Cheetos, was tested in small Latino markets in East LA.
16. Flamin' Hot Cheetos became a huge success and was sold across the US by 1992.
17. Richard became PepsiCo's vice president of multicultural sales and marketing.
18. Richard teaches EI classes and shares his story of overcoming obstacles to achieve success.