PizzaRev has announced that its Los Angeles–based custom pizza concept will enter the franchise arena as part of its strategic growth plan.
“We will continue to rapidly expand our corporate stores, and we are excited now to offer others the opportunity to participate in the PizzaRev story,” says PizzaRev co-CEO Rodney Eckerman. “We have been steadfastly focused on honing our model for the past year, and now are positioned to achieve our long-term goals while satisfying the high-quality franchisees we intend to engage.”
PizzaRev has hired an industry leader, Mark Lyso, CFE, to spearhead its franchise initiatives. Lyso was most recently director of franchise development for Sizzler USA, and he joins the PizzaRev team as vice president of franchise development.
“Mark’s insight and past experience in the industry, which includes his expansion of the Famous Dave’s franchise from two to 175 units, will be invaluable to achieving our growth goals,” Eckerman says.
Co-CEO Irv Zuckerman adds, “We have filed to franchise in all 50 U.S. states, and our goal is to partner with experienced multiunit franchisees who share our vision for the PizzaRev brand.”
PizzaRev opened in El Segundo, California, earlier this month and opens its newest corporate store in Oxnard, California, this week, with additional L.A. locations under development in Burbank, Van Nuys, Bakersfield, Thousand Oaks, Camarillo, Los Angeles, and Westlake Village coming in 2013 and 2014.
Nominated for “Best Pizza in Los Angeles” by CitySearch, PizzaRev has earned one of the highest Yelp ratings of any pizza restaurant in L.A.
“PizzaRev is a truly interactive dining experience,” says Nicholas Eckerman, PizzaRev’s COO. “Starting with our made-from-scratch dough, everything you could want on your pizza is displayed right before your eyes and crafted to your personal preference. Once your pizza is just right, it goes in our revolutionary, open-flame, stone-hearth oven and emerges perfectly cooked in less than three minutes.”
PizzaRev is poised to continue its growth in the community and outward with its new partner Buffalo Wild Wings Inc., which earlier this year announced an equity-investment in PizzaRev.
“Buffalo Wild Wings’ investment recognizes PizzaRev as a leader of an emerging restaurant concept with high growth potential,” says Kathy Benning, Buffalo Wild Wings executive vice president of global marketing, brand, and business development. “Along with chicken wings, pizza is one of America’s most popular foods and we believe that PizzaRev has great potential for continued growth, and we are excited to see PizzaRev begin their franchise program.”
Sally Smith, Buffalo Wild Wings CEO and PizzaRev board member, recently announced PizzaRev is expanding to Minnesota, saying, “We’re going to open a company-owned unit or more in Minneapolis, with the goal of opening the first one in the first quarter of 2014.”
