On June 6th of this year, Emerge expanded its territory and acquired 30 Pizza Huts in Arizona. The overall transition to our new Pizza Hut market went and is continuing to go extremely well. When Emerge expands, we tackle things head-on and get it done effectively as a team. We quickly take over markets, renovate, and relocate restaurants, all while making adjustments and tackling opportunities we see along the way.
A lot of adjustments have been necessary since we took over this market on June 16th. While we were selected and approved to add Pizza Hut to our brand family by acquiring 30 units way before COVID-19, the pandemic struck in the middle of our transition and prolonged it. However, despite the delay, it was a really fast start for taking over a market of over 30 restaurants in such adverse circumstances. We faced a challenge we’ve never faced before. While we normally have a team of five or six individuals taking over a market, this is the first transition Emerge has managed without having an entire Emerge team on deck.
Even though only one person was actually in the market, with a lot of support from the team and our COO back at home, a phenomenal job was accomplished by all. Way to go!
Emerge added the perfect product to the portfolio during the pandemic because the pizza delivery and pick-up business was not affected as much as other food concepts. Taking on 30 Pizza Huts was a huge undertaking that surpassed expectations with amazing results.
Much credit goes to Emerge as a company, to operations in Arizona, and to the entire team in Houston who did a fantastic job supporting the transition. Much credit must also be given to the very solid team that was taken over because they have done a really good job adjusting to the changes. Huge amounts of support and engagement from every team member made this possible.
Congratulations Emerge Team!