News

Toppers adds IT leader to blaze trail into future

July 14, 2016

Toppers is taking a huge digital step for the brand's future with the recent hire of Tony Ellis as the chain's first vice president of information technology. His mission, according to a news release about the appointment, is to take the brand's technology strategy, as well as its innovation and execution to the next level. 

"Our goal is to continue to show more and more pizza fanatics that they don't have to settle for mediocre pizza. But in order to do so, we need to keep upping our game so that we're better than the big chains in every way," said Toppers President and founder Scott Gittrich. "It's a never-ending process of growing and evolving, and that applies to the backbone of Toppers' system, too—our technology."

Ellis spent 12 years leading IT operations for online costume and party supply retailer, BuySeasons. In that role, he is credited with helping grow the brand's revenue from single to triple-digit millions. He also co-founded e-commerce and web development software consultancy, Aperture Labs, two years ago. 

"When contemplating my next career move, I was on the hunt for one important thing—I wanted something where I could wake up every single morning and be able to say to myself, 'I love my job,'" said Ellis in a news release. 

"The moment you walk into Toppers' headquarters, you see the core values right there on the wall—it says to have fun and do everything with passion. … It was very clear that Toppers aligned very closely with what I was looking for—a company with high-growth potential and a fun environment that rewards you for working hard. They give you the opportunity to make a huge difference." 

Ellis said he wants to establish a cloud-first and mobile-first approach to technology for the brand. 

"Technology is a building block within an organization, and if we have a strong foundation, we can grow quickly," he said. "This starts with having an enhanced cloud-based system that'll give us scalability. 

"The cloud is essentially an enabler—it enables companies that don’t have a giant IT department to get those same full benefits without being slowed down as we continue to grow. We also want to give our customers what they want, and that starts with improving our mobile experience. Ease-of-use will remain a top priority as we look at ways to move forward with our technology." 

Ellis is also diving into creating the next generation platform to power Toppers' e-commerce website and system of stores. Ellis said this will completely reimagine the technology fueling Toppers from the ground up. 

"By introducing better, faster and more streamlined technology to our system, we'll be able to grow at a quicker rate than ever before," Ellis said.