On June 16th, 2020, Emerge made the decision to acquire 30 restaurants from the Pizza Hut franchise. It was a bold decision in the middle of a pandemic that had the entire QSR industry evolving in order to survive, and Pizza Hut quickly became our star during lockdown. Since pizza delivery and food pick-up services were not affected as much as other food concepts, taking on 30 Pizza Huts was a huge undertaking that surpassed expectations and yielded amazing results.
One year later, we couldn’t be prouder of our choice and the teams behind our Pizza Hut units. Our one-year anniversary with Pizza Hut has been one of growth and learning and I wanted to take a moment to congratulate and thank you all.
I remember coming into this market a year ago and meeting a group of very talented and dedicated individuals. At that moment, I knew that our executive team at Emerge had made a great decision. We have learned a lot from each other, and have accomplished many great things, as well. What I am most proud of is seeing the growth each of you has made as leaders and the steps a lot of you have made to further your career within our organization. I can't wait to see what else this year has in store for us, and to continue to grow this market shoulder-to-shoulder with the rest of you.
This experience has totally changed the way I view the restaurant business now. This was my very first big project with Emerge and it has taught me that we can't go anywhere without our people first. During the pandemic, this was even more critical for us. We had to be extremely sensitive with decision-making for the business ensuring our peoples’ and customers’ health and safety were a top priority. If we can take care of our people, no matter what the situation, we’re going to go a long way in any business or brand that we acquire.
I think that's really what I took away from this. It made me realize that business became secondary for us, when our most relevant concerns became: “let's take care of the people that work for us, let's make sure nobody's unemployed, let's make sure they continue to keep their hours”. Most of them continue to receive the same compensation or more, and then our bonus program, for example, continues to be just as consistent as it was prior to the pandemic. In some cases, it got even better for several individuals too.
Lastly, I want to thank you for trusting and believing in me, and for giving me the opportunity to be the key operator for this Market. This was a unique acquisition to say the least, but it certainly played a huge role in helping us grow. No matter what the future holds for us within our organization, I will forever be grateful to you!
Thank You, and Happy 1 Year!
Carlos Espinoza
Senior Market Director Emerge Inc.