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Pizza Patron experiences best performance in 28-year history after shuttering stores

Mexican pizza chain Pizza Patrón experienced its best performance in its 28-year history in 2014 after shuttering under-performing stores.

January 23, 2015

Mexican pizza chain Pizza Patrón experienced its best performance in its 28-year history in 2014, the company announced, after shuttering under-performing stores. It ended the year with a 10.1 percent increase in total sales and 32 of its 90 stores experiencing all-time sales records. Same store average unit volume increased 17.1 over 2013.

The chain also attributes its success to a "newly rejuvenated corporate culture focused on selling pizzas rather than navigating the 'noise' in the system." Pizza Patron closed 20 percent of its under-performing units in 2013 and after a decade of franchising, suspended franchise sales in January 2014.

Brand Director Andrew Gamm also credited the company's controversial LTO campaign, La Ch!#gona, which experienced censorship of its radio ads, but won the Best PR Campaign award at the 2014 U.S. Hispanic Idea Awards in Miami. The promotion accounted for more than four percent of the pizza sales mix, more than doubling peak historical averages.

Additionally, success came from Pizza Patron's $3.99 large pepperoni pizza offer Mondays through Wednesdays during August and September 2014. Same store comparable sales rose 18 percent over the same period in 2013.

In October, the company debuted its Mexican-inspired pizza combo for $16.99 that ran for 13 weeks. Same store comparable sales increased by 13.8 percent over the previous year's period.