News

Round Table Pizza franchisee pulls 23 stores from system to form Paradise Pizza

October 20, 2003

TRACY, Calif.—Paul Pishos, owner of H&H Pizza, severed his longstanding franchise ties with Round Table Pizza and renamed his 23 restaurants Paradise Pizza.

According to the San Mateo County Times, the switch took effect Oct. 1, ending a lengthy dispute between Pishos and the 539-store Walnut Creek, Calif.-based chain.

"I ate, slept and breathed Round Table Pizza for 33 years," Pishos told the Times. "We were disgruntled. They were disgruntled. We just didn't want to be Round Table franchisees anymore."

Round Table Chief Operating Officer Rob McCourt said the separation—by and large a rarity in the pizza franchise business—was mutually beneficial.

"We felt it was better for both parties to go their separate ways," said. "They were at odds with us over several contractual issues. They were also under-performing in the system."

Pishos, whose stores are located in the San Francisco Bay Area, said he's looking forward to investing in his own company the $800,000 to $1 million a year he spent on franchise royalties. In fact, he expects to begin an expansion plan in the San Joaquin Valley.

To date, Paradise has changed its dough and sauce, added hand-tossed pizzas and new toppings such as feta cheese, Kalamata olives and fresh basil to the menu. Appetizers and sandwiches are on the menu, too.

In response to its new competitor, Round Table is turning up the heat. The company has signed five leases in the San Joaquin Valley and opened its first replacement store in Stockton.

It also beat Pishos out of a contract to serve pizza at Network Associates Coliseum, home to the Oakland Raiders.

The chain said it plans to replace Pishos' 23 units over the next two or three years with mostly company-owned units.