Blaze Fast-Fire’d Pizza announced that it is adding 30 new franchise partners to its current group of 55 multi-unit franchise developers. The fast-casual pizza chain, known for its chef-driven recipes and hip, modern restaurants, also announced the appointment of Carrie Sams as vice president of franchise development. The company, with its nationwide footprint established and 300th restaurant opening soon, is expanding its team and accelerating its growth rate.
Sams joins Blaze Pizza from Jamba Juice where she most recently served as senior director of franchise development for the past 10 years. Sams experience spans both domestic and international franchise development, along with significant experience in developing non-traditional channels.
Both announcements coincide with the release of 45 target areas around the country that are each capable of holding three to 10 Blaze Pizza restaurants. In her new role, Sams will be focused on recruiting the 30 new franchise partners and activating development in the 45 new areas.
“Now that our current franchise partners are established, we’re excited to add the next wave of new franchisees to our family,” says Carolyne Canady, chief development officer and president of Blaze Pizza’s international division. “We’ve just opened up a hand full of territories and we invite experienced multi-unit operators who are looking to partner with an amazing, fast-growing restaurant brand to get in touch with us.”
Beginning in September, Blaze Pizza will be hosting market level meetings around the country to help franchise candidates get familiar with the opportunity at Blaze Pizza. The meetings will be held in Dallas, El Paso, Houston, Cleveland, Indianapolis, San Francisco, Baltimore, Philadelphia and northern Virginia. Interested operators can get more information by contacting Sams at carrie.sams@blazepizza.com or Canady at carolyne@blazepizza.com.
Domestically, Blaze Pizza currently has restaurants open in 40 U.S. states. Additionally, the company has seven locations in Canada, and plans to add 11 new sites in 2018, including 3 new locations in Vancouver. This year, Blaze has seen record sales in its first Middle East locations in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia through a partnership with M.H. Alshaya Co.
