RedBrick Pizza Lives up to Original Predictions

By: RedBrick Pizza | 3 Shares 337 Reads

Orlando Based Operation Continues Franchise Expansion across State

ORLANDO, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--February 24, 2008 will mark the 2 year anniversary of RedBrick Pizza in the state of Florida. Despite a down economy owners Dan Dumont and Paul Chong have seen their gamble pay off. If you ask Chong, they are extremely pleased with their progress to date.

"We opened our first RedBrick Pizza Café in February of 2006 with very limited restaurant experience and a goal of opening 300 fast casual restaurants before all was said and done," said Chong.

"Today we have already opened or are in various stages of opening 16 restaurants across the state and can see that 300 is not a lofty goal based on the franchisee interest level we are getting," Chong continued.

With a strong foothold in Central Florida, the pair uses their first store in the Uptown area of Altamonte Springs as the headquarters and training center for the state.

"We have franchise partners who range from a former Army officer who flew helicopters to a French Chef; some of our franchisees have food experience, others are drawn to the simplicity of the concept, and the growth potential," said Dumont who oversees the franchise side of the business.

In an industry with a high failure rate, the RedBrick Pizza company seems to have the heartbeat of the consumer, in more ways than one.

"People are looking for fresh and healthy with gourmet taste. We deliver those with great service in a comfortable café setting, it's a winning combination," explained Chong.

In the next few months 16 restaurants across the state will either be open or in the development stages. Opening next month will be a RedBrick Pizza Café in the Channelside area of Downtown Tampa. Café #15 which will also open next month is part of an upscale development on Panama City Beach and will mark the first café to open in a space developed by the national retail developer, Simon Properties.

"Both of these openings signal important steps for us," said Chong. "Our franchisees are smart and see the potential for growth. When you start with marquee locations you can focus on quality and service and accelerate building your brand awareness."

Smart is a term often used to describe both Chong and Dumont who met on Wall Street where Dumont served as a vice president of Goldman Sachs Asset Management and Chong served as executive vice president of Prudential Retirement. Chong holds an undergraduate degree in Communications from Boston University and Dumont earned his MBA from Columbia University Graduate School of Business.

About RedBrick Pizza

California based RedBrick Pizza is a national restaurant chain known for combining centuries old Italian tradition with new world convenience. Using only fresh ingredients, the cafés offer intimate dining and a well considered menu of pizzas, sandwiches, salads and gelato desserts.

The chain last year ranked #9 on Fast Casual magazine's list of the 100 "Movers and Shakers". In 2006 RedBrick Pizza was chosen by Nation's Restaurant News as a "Hot Concept", was chosen by Restaurant Business magazine as one of The Future 50 and was also featured in Entrepreneur Magazine as one of the Top New Franchises.

Industry expert Tom Feltenstein was quoted as saying that, "RedBrick has won the respect of industry experts and is out to become the consumer's first choice."

Nationally there are 75 RedBrick Pizza Cafés open and operating. Another 30 are scheduled to open by the middle of 2008, with Florida ranking as the number two state by number of units, behind the state of California.

Dumont and Chong are not surprised by their success but they are appreciative.

"When you go into this business you hear all the stories about what works and what doesn't. We did our homework and know that RedBrick Pizza works for us, our franchisees and most importantly our customers," said Chong.

Free Franchise Seminars - Open to the Public - Will Be Held in:



Orlando                   February 9

Tampa                     February 16

Naples                    February 23

West Palm Beach           March 1

Panama City               March 8

Mobile, AL                March 15

For information go to www.redbrickpizza.com or call Dan Dumont at 407/506-4439.

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