The Church Restaurant Group, LLC announced the opening of the first Malawi’s Pizza—Pizza with a Purpose franchise on the eastern seaboard with grand opening celebrations beginning June 23 through June 25. The fast-casual gourmet pizza restaurant is in the Village of Spotsylvania Towne Centre in Fredericksburg, its first of five locations in the Northern Virginia area.
Malawi’s Pizza—Pizza with a Purpose is a fast-casual dining concept offering gourmet pizzas, pastas, salads and desserts served with the freshest ingredients all within minutes of ordering. “We are thrilled to bring this unique dining experience to the Fredericksburg community,” says franchise owner, Patrick Church. Church and his wife, Rebecca Church, have been managing the planning and construction of the restaurant since last fall.
“Just as important as fresh and chef-created menu options, Malawi’s Pizza prides itself on an unprecedented commitment to corporate social responsibility with its award-winning Meal for Meal Exchange Program,” Church says. For every meal purchased at a Malawi’s restaurant, a nutrient-dense meal is donated to a child in Malawi, Africa. Malawi’s “Journey to a Million Meals,” reached a milestone last month, with 942,669 meals donated.
“Pizza with a Purpose is more than a marketing tactic, it is a serious corporate commitment to ‘pay it forward’ to those in need,” says corporate CEO and culinary chef, Kent Andersen. “This program redefines ‘voluntourism.’ Customers can make a difference by eating at a local Malawi’s since every purchase supports kids in need and builds the local economy in Malawi by funding farmers and businesses that are providing meals to these children,” Andersen says.
In addition to the new restaurant in Fredericksburg, the fifth Malawi’s in the U.S., The Church Restaurant Group plans to establish four additional locations in the Northern Virginia area. Malawi’s does not sell individual franchises, only area development opportunities. This unique business model was designed by franchise expert, Dr. Ben Litalien, CFE.
“Ideally, we are looking for multi-unit operators that want to add a fast-casual, gourmet pizza offer to their portfolio,” says Dr. Litalien, “looking to ramp-up quickly with experienced parties that appreciate our unique model.”
The Malawi’s restaurant in Fredericksburg will participate in the Taste of the Village “restaurant crawl” by the Spotsylvania Mall on June 8.
The official Grand Opening at the restaurant, located at 1 Towne Centre Boulevard, will begin on June 23 at 11 a.m. Celebrations and special activities are planned through June 25.
