Longtime Restaurant Exec Joins Pizza Inn’s Operator Ranks

Dion Firooznia is working to reopen the Pizza Inn restaurant in Elizabethton, Tennessee, as part a new franchise agreement he signed with the brand, and “people literally want to hug me for reopening it,” he said.

There’s obvious demand for the buffet concept, he continued, and as the leadership team at parent company Rave Restaurant Group pushes innovation across products and customer offers, Firooznia is confident he picked the right time to join the brand. It wasn’t an immediate attraction, however.

Approached by the company in 2020 about becoming a franchisee, Firooznia, whose career has spanned district manager, regional vice president and operating partner roles across CKE Restaurants, Bojangles and Qdoba, declined. “I’d never been in a Pizza Inn,” he said, so rather than commit to owning restaurants he joined the company as a franchise business consultant and “had the opportunity to really get to know the brand.”

What Firooznia quickly discovered was the presence of a strong operator made the difference between a top-performing restaurant and a struggling one.

“What really impressed me was … the good running Pizza Inns in North Carolina, they were really running a stellar business,” he said. “And so I saw the opportunity, if operated the right way, it could be a gold mine. …The potential here is just enormous.”

Firooznia signed a six-unit development deal to open restaurants in North Carolina and Tennessee, including the reopening of the aforementioned Elizabethton location, which closed in 2020 in the midst of the pandemic, the franchisee later exiting the system. He also plans to bring Pizza Inn back to Asheboro, North Carolina, where he lives and where he said people remember the brand and will enthusiastically support its return after 10-plus years.

Rave’s domestic Pizza Inn footprint and that of fast-casual sister brand Pie Five have shrunk in recent years. The company reported 133 Pizza Inn locations and 33 Pie Five stores open as of September 26, 2021, down from 155 Pizza Inn units and 58 Pie Five restaurants in 2019. Pizza Inn’s same-store sales, meanwhile, were up 25 percent in the first quarter of fiscal 2021 compared to the same period in 2020.

Firooznia said the brand is now “going in the right direction and I want to be a part of it.” He likes the leadership of Rave CEO Brandon Solano, hired in October 2019 after the company terminated Scott Crane as chief executive. Solano, said Firooznia, has brought “new, innovative products into play,” and is focused on franchisee growth. Pizza Inn last year introduced menu items such as a parmesan crunch stuffed crust pizza and house pan pizza, and it inked some new multi-unit agreements.

“A good running Pizza Inn with a good buffet can have up to 16 different pizzas at a time,” he noted. “So the selection for the consumer was a big draw … plus the pasta bar. And the best one to me, the dessert bar.”

Firooznia, who formed D2 Restaurant Group, is looking forward to building a team and creating a culture that’s “all about people.” After moving to the United States from the northern German city of Hamburg at 16, he was an hourly worker at Carl’s Jr. restaurants. Following a stint as owner of Hemingway’s Restaurant & Bar, an American casual restaurant in Lüneburg, Germany, Firooznia worked at CKE corporate and then spent 15 years at Bojangles. During his Bojangles tenure, he opened 79 restaurants, about 40 of them in the last two years he was there.

“So I have the ability to hire and develop new talent quickly,” he said, adding it’s important, especially given immense labor challenges, to cultivate an environment “so that people actually want to work there.” His philosophy: “I’m here to serve you and making sure I’m giving them the tools to succeed and making sure they know they’re my customer, not just the guest.”

The cost to open a Pizza Inn ranges from $415,000 to $793,000. Its royalty fee is 4 percent, and franchisees pay 1 percent of gross sales to the brand’s advertising fund and must spend at least 5 percent of sales on local advertising.

Quick Hits

Krystal is expanding into the Northeast with a new Super Bowl-winning franchisee. Former New York Giants wide receiver and Super Bowl XLVI champion Victor Cruz signed an agreement to develop five restaurants in New Jersey. As part of the agreement, the restaurants will be branded “Victor Cruz’s Krystal,” and the first is set to open in Cruz’s hometown of Paterson.

PetWellClinic signed its first franchisee in Arizona. Cole Walling and his family, also Re-Bath franchisees for 12-plus years, inked a 16-unit agreement to develop the walk-in veterinary clinic concept in the Phoenix area. The brand also signed an eight-unit agreement with Ed and Betsy Erb for locations in New Orleans and Baton Rouge. Ed and Betsy are veterans of the U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force, respectively.

Mountain Mike’s Pizza signed a five-store agreement with Gem State Pies and operators Boris and Laurie Ilic and Travis and Alyssa Trask to open locations in Idaho’s Treasure Valley. The group is adding Mountain Mike’s to a portfolio that includes a dozen Jersey Mike’s Subs units in multiple states. The brand also signed a five-unit agreement with RVTC Enterprises to develop locations in Utah County, Utah, starting in Orem. RVTC is owned by Robert Viveiros and Tony Cabral.

Ziggi’s Coffee signed a multi-unit agreement with franchisees Ron and Denise Cazares for locations in Colorado. The Cazareses, who signed for three stores, plan to open their first location in Parker, a community about 25 miles southeast of Denver.

Big Blue Swim School signed a multi-unit franchise agreement with Austin Smith to develop 21 locations across Utah, Arizona and Nevada. Smith’s background is in restaurant management and development as an investor in the Savory Fund, a food and beverage practice managed by Andrew Smith and Greg Warnock of Mercato Partners. He was also a project manager and director of strategic growth at Four Foods Group. He plans to open his first Big Blue location in Orem, Utah, in July 2022.

Pet Evolution signed an agreement with franchisees Teri O’Donnell and Gary Meyers to open 20 of its pet supply stores in Florida’s Tampa area over the next 10 years. O’Donnell is a former Massage Envy franchisee and she was also a regional developer for Amazing Lash Studio. And she’s developing another concept, WaveMax Laundry. Meyers, meanwhile, was a regional developer for Massage Envy and is a franchise owner of The Joint Chiropractic with three locations.

Launch Entertainment signed a four-unit agreement with physician Clay Ritchie, who will open locations of the family entertainment concept in Florida’s Tampa area.

Aqua-Tots Swim Schools signed an area development agreement with franchisees Mo Thweny, Jason Ibrahim and Bashar Hannosh of East Coast Investment Group to open 10 locations in the Boston area. The group brings experience in sales, program management and construction, with Ibrahim owning a construction company that’s built several Aqua-Tots locations.

Chicken Salad Chick signed a two-unit deal with Mike and Kelly Parker to open restaurants in the Springfield area of Missouri. Mike was an area supervisor with McDonald’s for more than 20 years and then was vice president of retail operations at Krispy Kreme before owning four stores. Kelly comes to Chicken Salad Chick after a career in finance.

Twin Peaks signed a 10-unit franchise agreement with Moussa Haidar and Tom Pisula, who will bring the sports bar concept to the Philadelphia market. Pisula, whose Texas-based Pinecroft Realty manages and leases commercial real estate with about 100 medical office buildings in the southeast, also has property he leases to several restaurant franchises. He said he brings the real estate and finance expertise to the partnership, while Haidar is a restaurant veteran who operates 21 IHOPs and is an On the Border franchisee.

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