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Blaze Pizza launches summer 'untern' program

May 26, 2017

In the dining room of one of Blaze Fast-Fire'd Pizza’s nearly 200 restaurants, emblazoned are the words "Unfollow the Rules." The statement is emblematic of the company's independent spirit, said Co-founder Elise Wetzel, so should come as no surprise that Blaze is taking an unconventional approach to launching its first internship program.  

Four Blaze "Unterns," who will join the marketing department next week at the company’s headquarters in Los Angeles, are tasked with educating the leadership team on emerging digital trends and youth culture. They will also help with the company’s social strategy, taking the wheel of the brand's Snapchat channel for the month and shaping how the brand communicates with its followers, particularly Gen Z, according to a company press release.

Honoring its commitment to valuing the people behind the pizza, the Unterns are all Blaze Pizza team members who are currently working at locations across the country, Wetzel said. These individuals will leave their hometown restaurants in Michigan, South Carolina, Washington and California and live together in furnished housing, provided by Blaze, located just blocks from the office. 

"At Blaze, we're all about thinking outside the box," she said. "So, rather than solely read articles on youth culture, we thought it would be fun to go right to the source and learn from the group that lives it every day. We're excited to share this opportunity with our team members and work side-by-side with them to cultivate fanatics."

Chosen for their brand passion and social savvy, the Unterns will utilize both to create dynamic content for Snapchat, increase engagement and grow Blaze's audience, according to the release. Spending much of their time working outside the walls of a traditional office environment, the group will provide followers with exclusive behind-the-scenes coverage, including a look into the company's sponsorship of Vans Warped Tour and integration with tour band Jule Vera, who will be performing acoustic sets at select restaurants this summer.

The collective will also travel across Southern California to meet with key Blaze partners and gain valuable experience that they can leverage in their future careers.

"Just as we're changing the game in the way people think about and eat pizza, we’re rewriting the rules on what a summer internship can be," said Kim Freer, director of cultivating fanatics at Blaze Pizza. "I think we'll learn just as much from our Unterns as they will learn from us."

Guests can follow along on the company's Snapchat channel or Untern blog.