Franchising

Pita Mediterranean's corporate locations transition to franchises

Provided

March 31, 2021

Georgia-based Pita Mediterranean Street Food has transitioned its six corporate-owned locations to franchise ownership. Due to COVID-related changes in the restaurant industry, Founder and CEO Nour Rabai, said franchising would improve operations and profitability while priming the company for growth.

"COVID-19 really opened the idea of selling corporate stores to focus on the broader picture," Rabai said in a company press release. "Although it has been a challenging time, it enabled us to forecast the future and understand the best move for PITA as a company. By selling our units and focusing on the group as a whole, we have created a more profitable format for franchisees."

After franchisees were approved through the application process, Rabai and his team completed four weeks of in-house training with franchisees before fully executing the takeover.

As a result of this new focus, Rabai has put emphasis on menu design and development and overall growth of the Pita brand. The brand recently opened a location in Chicago and has a second Chicago restaurant under construction with several more planned. Next month, a location in Orlando will open with 11 more to follow this year. Alabama continues to be an active market for the brand as well.

"With the current pipeline, our top priority is assisting franchisees in finding a territory and opening in that specific location," Rabai said.

As for Rabai's role moving forward, he will focus on what he can do for franchisees to help them become more successful. The corporate team will fully support each franchisee in the areas of location scouting, marketing, branding, menu development, operations, employment and growth strategies.

Pita is open to adding additional franchisees, Rabai said.