Mountain Mike’s Pizza, a leading California-based family-style pizza chain for more than 40 years, known for its legendary crispy, curly pepperonis, Mountain-sized pizzas, and dough made fresh daily, is opening up new franchise opportunities in Texas after signing a three-store deal with franchise industry veterans Hector Haget and Khris Tate of Jefes Pizza, LLC. to develop in the Dallas-Ft. Worth area. As the saying goes, everything’s bigger in Texas, and residents of the Lone Star State now can look forward to the brand’s famous 20-inch Mountain-sized pizzas and toppings that could fill a ten-gallon hat at locations dotting Collin County, including McKinney and Frisco. Other single-and multi-unit deals in the surrounding area are in process with details to be announced soon.
The clamoring for Mountain Mike’s mouthwatering pizzas and family-friendly environment is at an all-time high, and as the company continues to experience record sales and new unit growth, the brand is methodically expanding its footprint throughout the Western United States. As the past two years have shown, the time for qualified franchisees to pursue a successful, resilient and sought-after pizza concept like Mountain Mike’s Pizza has never been better. With several multi-unit development deals already in motion in eight states in the West, it’s a uniquely attractive time to join the Mountain Mike’s Pizza franchise family in Texas, which is likely to be the brand’s second-largest market within the next few years.
“Mountain Mike’s owes its success to some of the most reputable and talented franchisees in the business, and we are actively seeking entrepreneurs in the Dallas area and throughout Texas to join our franchise family during the most exciting time in the company’s history,” says Jim Metevier, President and Chief Operating Officer at Mountain Mike’s Pizza. “A family dining staple for more than four decades throughout California, we’ve recently been welcomed into new communities throughout the Western U.S. where our franchise partners are experiencing record-breaking success. The opportunity is ripe for passionate entrepreneurs and successful multi-brand franchise operators to reap the benefits of joining one of the nation’s leading family-friendly pizza concepts.”
Through the first six months of 2021, Mountain Mike’s has continued its record-breaking sales growth with same-store-sales (SSS) surging 16.4% and total system sales (TSS) jumping 25.9% over 2020. AUVs for the brand now are close to $1.1M systemwide with the top 50% of locations averaging close to $1.3 million. Digital sales, which stood at 18.25% pre-pandemic, grew impressively to 40% as Q2 ended – fueled by an array of successful digital marketing initiatives. Currently developing in eight Western states, Mountain Mike’s opened six new restaurants in Q2 and 14 thus far for the year with expectations to have a total of 25 new locations open by the end of 2021.
“One of the most interesting facts about Texas is while it has had the fastest-growing population in the U.S. over the past 10 years, its pizza capacity has had trouble keeping up. The number of pizza places per capita is among the lowest in the country. Yet, Texans absolutely love their pizza, so we couldn’t be more excited that now is the right time to introduce all that Mountain Mike’s Pizza has to offer to our friends in the Lone Star State,” adds Chris Britt and Ed St. Geme, co-owners of the brand. “If we had to choose a partner from scratch to do it big and right in Texas, we could not have been blessed any more than having Hector and Kris lead the way given their success as Jersey Mike’s franchisees in the state.”
