New Franchise Partner Set to Bring First MOD location to Vancouver Island
SEATTLE (October 8, 2019) – MOD Super Fast Pizza Holdings, LLC (“MOD Pizza”, “MOD” or the “Company”) today announced plans to expand its purpose-led fast casual brand into Canada. The development agreement for Canada was signed with V.I. Pizza Inc., led by Jim Hayden, Jeff Jefford and Ken Whitaker, who have deep food industry experience and operate several successful brands across Vancouver Island. Their agreement includes development rights to bring five MOD locations to the island over the next several years. Mike Yasinski, co-founder of Hudsons Canada’s Pub and executive committee member of Restaurants Canada, is also an investor.
“We are confident that MOD will translate well in the Canadian marketplace, and that the V.I. Pizza team will be great partners as we further expand our footprint. With Vancouver Island’s close proximity to our home base of Seattle, this feels like the perfect first step into Canada.” said Scott Svenson, co-founder and CEO of MOD. “For us, the most important factor in selecting our franchisees is finding those who not only share our business values, but are committed to cultivating the MOD culture in their stores. The V.I. Pizza team are aligned with our belief that taking care of people, and using the platform of MOD to make a positive impact, leads to a successful business. As we continue to grow MOD’s footprint, we hope to identify additional like-minded partners who are interested in helping us expand across Canada.”
Seattle-based MOD Pizza is a pioneer of the fast casual made-to-order pizza segment, founded in 2008 by entrepreneurs Scott and Ally Svenson. The Company has been recognized as the fastest growing restaurant chain in the United States for the past four years, and currently has over 455 locations system-wide, with an additional 20+ stores slated to open by the end of 2019. At its core, MOD is a purpose-led company committed to using the business to make a positive social impact in the communities it serves.
“We’re absolutely thrilled to introduce MOD Pizza to Canada, and to share its compelling combination of superior food quality, value, speed and most importantly, its platform for doing good,” said Jim Hayden, COO of V.I. Pizza Inc. “MOD embodies everything we believe a brand should stand for – a people-first culture, a community driven approach, and a best-in-class business model. We can’t wait to debut the first store in our home market of Vancouver Island.”
V.I. Pizza Inc. will open its first MOD location in late 2019 in Langford, British Columbia, in the newly developed Belmont Market Shopping Centre.
ABOUT MOD PIZZA
MOD’s individual artisan-style pizzas are made on demand, allowing customers to create their own pizzas and salads with any combination of over 30 toppings, all for one incredible price. With 455+ locations system-wide, MOD is committed to creating not only a cool place to eat, but an inspired place to work. MOD recently earned a spot on the Fortune 2019 “Change the World” list, for its purpose-led culture and commitment to provide opportunities to individuals with barriers to employment. The Company has also been named America’s fastest growing chain restaurant by Technomic for four years running and named the most loved pizza brand by Foodable Network. MOD has earned a spot on the Inc.5000 list and has been recognized by Fortune as one of the “20 Best Workplaces in Retail,” a “Best Workplace for Women,” a “Best Workplace for Millennials,” and a “Best Workplace for Diversity.” For more information, please visit www.modpizza.com or connect with the brand via Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.
*The term “system-wide” refers to all company-operated and licensed store locations.
The trademarks MOD, MOD Pizza, and the MOD Shield, are owned by MOD Super Fast Pizza, LLC.
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