American Pizza Chain Looking to Make Dough in Winnipeg

A popular American pizza chain is cooking up a plan to open three new locations in Winnipeg over the next year.  The province's first Papa John's pizzeria is expected to open in St. James near the end of September, according to one of the restaurant's franchise owners.

"This has been in the works for about a year," said Corey Brandt, chief operating officer of Papa John's Manitoba.

The 1,470-sq. ft. location on Portage Avenue beside Dick's Dylan's will serve St. James and Charleswood, Brandt said. A second location will open in Fort Richmond near the new football stadium in 2012, Brandt said. The hunt is still on to find space for a third location, likely in North Kildonan, he added.

"After that, it will be up to Winnipeggers. If there's a market for it, we'll keep going," said Brandt, who hopes to open as many as nine locations in the city and a few others throughout the province.

Each location will offer takeout and delivery service only, he said.

It's not the first time Brandt, a Transcona resident and former Winnipeg police officer, has worked in the food service industry and owned a restaurant.

A former Domino's employee and Dairy Queen franchise owner, Brandt said he first tried Papa Johns pizza in Minneapolis in 1998.

After realizing there was no opportunity to open his own Domino's location, he aligned with partners Ken MacDonald and Tj Gross to bring the American chain to the Prairies.

"I don't believe anybody is serving a great quality, top notch product from a chain. Papa Johns wins awards in almost every market they're in," Brandt said.

"We are in competition with Pizza Hut, Domino's and Boston Pizza, but I feel we fill a niche no one is really chasing at this point."

The group is investing between $200,000 and 300,000 in each restaurant, Brandt said. The stores will employ about 30 people each.

Scott Jocelyn, executive director of the Manitoba Restaurant and Food Services Association, said Papa John's will be in tough to grab a slice of the city's pizza market.

"It's very competitive, but I definitely think it's a positive sign for the (food service industry)," Jocelyn said.

"I think operators realize competition is part of the equation. You certainly want to be the only place in town, but that's not the reality. Competition is good. It keeps everyone focused and sharp."

The chain wouldn't move into the city if it didn't see opportunity, he added.

"I don't think they'd be coming to invest here unless they've thought it through. They're not saying, 'Hey, lets grab a map and go to Winnipeg,'" he said.

Jocelyn echoed Brandt's opinion that the chain's success will depend largely on public opinion.

"The public can cause people to continue to do what they're doing, or look at what they're doing if they need to make changes," he said.

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