News

Top That! opens 1st franchised unit

October 18, 2011

Tulsa, Okla., is home to Top That! Pizza's first franchise unit; four more are under construction and dozens are in the pipeline, according to Lori Walderich, founder and co-owner of Top That! Pizza.

The chain, which specializes in custom, personal-sized pizzas for a fixed price, allows guests to oversee the creation of their pizza in much the same way as they might in a sub sandwich shop, choosing from an Italian white, multigrain or honey wheat crust and a wide selection of sauces, vegetables, meats and cheeses. Customers receive their hot pizzas less than three minutes after placing their orders.

Guests can choose from two pizza sizes: a 10-inch pie for $6.99 and a 6-inch kids pizza for $3.49. Unlike other pizza restaurants, prices remain the same, no matter how many toppings customers choose. Several side salads and Barbee Cookies complete the food offerings.

Top That! also has a deal with Coca-Cola to feature its Freestyle fountain dispenser. The unit is touchscreen operated and serves more than 100 varieties of regular and low-calorie beverage brands, flavored waters, sports drinks, lemonades and other options.

"People have told us they'll drive fifteen miles to create their own pizza and custom drink. Now they're asking us when we'll build a store near them," said Jeff Walderich, co-owner of Top That!. "That was our cue to begin seriously offering franchises to qualified individuals. We literally had prospects handing us cards within two months of opening our doors."

In total, six locations will be open by the end of 2011. Five additional locations are scheduled to be under construction in the first half of 2012 in Oklahoma, Texas and Missouri with more negotiations in the works.

Read more about franchising.