Peter Riggs saved Pita Pit once. But can he do it twice?
Two a long time ago, Riggs was a student at the University of Idaho and loved his local Pita Pit. After graduating, he and a few friends bought several franchises in California and then asked for a statewide development deal. Instead, the Canadian company asked them to take over all U.S. operations. “They were ready to move on,” Riggs says. So he and some partners bought the company, grew it to 250 locations, and sold their shares in 2018. But during the pandemic, the American brand shrank to 65 locations. So last March, Riggs (who became an Idaho state senator) returned as U.S. CEO.
He knew that to save lots of Pita Pit again, he would have to work with the remaining franchisees, but they were wary. “There wasn’t a lot of corporate support in the years we were gone,” he says. “The only way I could convince these franchisees that everything was going to be OK was to tell them to their faces.” So he bought a camper and hit the road. Fifty thousand miles later, he has some lessons to share.
Were there difficult conversations with other Pita Pit franchisees?
Mostly I used to be the only one listening. Some of them desired to vent, though I wasn’t there when it happened and I wasn’t responsible for the global pandemic. They needed a release valve for me to be. So I sat back and allow them to unload on me.
What have you learned from them?
We are on many college campuses. The big problem was that Pita Pit began 25 years ago by selling sandwiches for $5 or $6. It’s gotta be a $10 sandwich, but that is expensive for college kids. They wanted something smaller and we had nothing. So we needed to introduce more side dishes and nutritious snacks like our Greek grilled cheese to win back those customers. It’s a half grilled pita with limited ingredients for $6, depending on location.
Have franchisees accepted your ideas for the future?
We are creating a prototype of a drive-thru unit and wish to make our stores look higher. Some franchisees disagreed – they wanted all the things to go back to the late Nineteen Nineties and 2000s. I said I could not do that and we helped individuals who desired to move out find recent owners for their locations.
You also visited distributors. Why?
You have to be very careful with pita bread, otherwise it should crack and develop into unusable. Sometimes what we tell our food distribution network does not reach the warehouse level. So I went to the warehouses and talked to the guys.
This sounds unusual.
They said no CEO ever goes there and asks for feedback. They, too, face problems, including labor shortages. It made them feel appreciated. This is essential because if something goes fallacious, I can call someone locally.
How long did these warehouse visits last?
An hour, max. If you think about how rarely someone is appreciated for doing their job – we are all human. Treat people with respect and it should make all the things easier.
They sound like conversations lively lessons.
Well, my marketing team asked me to document this trip, so I turned the inside my van into a podcast studio. We launched a podcast Fantastic trip. I interviewed restaurant executives and marketing executives — I desired to learn about broader topics of debate across the industry. Just look where the conversations went. We think this is a really great opportunity to redefine the way we do the fast food business.