Papa John’s Opens 50th Restaurant in South Korea

Continuing its rapid expansion in Asia, Papa John’s International, Inc. today announced the opening of the 50th Papa John’s restaurant in South Korea.

Papa John’s franchisee PJI Korea opened its first Papa John’s restaurant in July 2003 and plans to have 90 restaurants open by the end of 2007, including several in major cities south of Seoul.

“The success of the South Korean market starts at the top with an outstanding franchisee, PJI Korea, led by operating partner James Cho and chief executive officer Channgwoo Soh,” says David Flanery, Papa John’s chief financial officer and acting managing director of the company’s International division.

Capitalizing on the enormous popularity of the World Cup, on June 1, PJI Korea launched an advertising campaign around the Australian national soccer team coach Guus Hiddink, who coached the South Korean national soccer team to the semifinals of the 2002 World Cup. Since the launch of the campaign and its first-ever use of television advertising, comp sales have increased significantly.

Additionally, to complement its recently launched call center and nationwide customer service number, beginning next month, PJI Korea will unveil an online ordering site from its homepage at www.papajohns.com.kr.

“We are very pleased with PJI Korea’s restaurant-level performance to date, and their commitment to the Papa John’s brand,” says Myles Felt, Papa John’s vice president of international operations. “Their innovative marketing and advertising strategies, and recently launched national call center and nationwide customer service number, are all key to PJI Korea’s success.”