Pita Pit Opens in Charleston, WV and is Featured in Charleston Daily Mail

Pita Pit was recently featured in an article about the newest Pita Pit opening in Charleston, WV in the Charleston Daily Mail. The story, “Pita Pit franchise opens in Kanawha City” profiles first-time franchise owner Pat Parker and chronicles his journey from discovering Pita Pit to opening the first Pita Pit in Charleston. It also discusses Pita Pit’s “fresh food, healthy eating” concept and attractive franchising opportunities. A portion of the article is included below and the article can be read in its entirety by clicking here.

Pita Pit franchise opens in Kanawha City
by Monica Orosz


When Pat Parker and his wife lived in Huntington, they loved stopping at the Pita Pit for lunch.

When their jobs - his as a financial planner for Merrill Lynch, hers as a physician for Charleston Area Medical Center - brought them to Charleston, they lamented the loss of their favorite sandwiches, tucked into bread that is baked like a pocket to hold the ingredients.

And then they did something about it.

Wednesday, Parker opened the state's third Pita Pit franchise in Kanawha City, at 4222 MacCorkle Ave. The concept is "fresh thinking, healthy eating," and the menu includes everything from breakfast pitas with eggs and sausage to cold cuts, steak, Mediterranean beef and falafel, made with chickpeas and spice.

Toppings include standards such as lettuce and tomato and the more unusual such as hummus and babaganoush, which is made with eggplant. There are 16 sauces, including tzatziki with yogurt and cucumber; mustard; and ancho chipotle. Sandwiches range from $4 to $6.

Already by lunchtime at Wednesday's soft opening, the restaurant was hopping.

"For me, it wasn't a money-driven thing," said Parker. Not that he wants to throw money down the tubes - he says the investment was a carefully thought-out one.

And the Pita Pit, which began in 1995 in Canada and now has 300 stores in North America, is pretty picky about its franchisees, too.

"Before they'd even accept us, we had to go to their headquarters in Coer d'Alene, Idaho, for a 'discovery day.'"

During that day, Pita Pit officials lay out the requirements for a franchise and interview the potential franchisee.

(Read More)

Pita Pit Opens in Lancaster, PA and is Featured in the Intelligencer Journal

The Intelligencer Journal recently published an article about the new Pita Pit opening today in Lancaster, PA. The article, entitled, “The Pita Pit arrives here,” also has photos of the new store built from a photo shoot set up with Pita Pit owner Nathan Groff. The piece announces Pita Pit’s arrival to the city and can be found below, and the original article can be found by clicking here.

The Pita Pit arrives here
By Chad Umble

The Pita Pit, which features Lebanese-style pitas, is opening Wednesday in Champion Forge Center, 398 Harrisburg Ave. It is next to Sukhothai Restaurant in Suite 500.

The Pita Pit's menu has sandwiches with a number of meat and vegetable fillings and a variety of toppings, including souvlaki, gyros and falafel sandwiches. It also offers salads and smoothies. It features takeout food, but also will have seating for 12.

The Pita Pit is a franchise that began in Canada in 1995 and now has more than 100 locations there and almost 200 in the United States. This is the first one in Lancaster County. Owners are Brad Alexander and Nathan Groff.

Hours: 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday to Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Thursday to Saturday. Phone: 517-7111.

(Read More)

Franchisee Profile: Bret Gibson of Pita Pit Lewiston, ID

Today we are highlighting Bret Gibson in our franchisee profile. Bret is the franchisee of the Lewiston, ID Pita Pit and is approaching his 1 year anniversary with Pita Pita as he has been a Pita Pit Franchisee since December of 2010

Location: 908 16th Ave., Lewiston, ID 83501


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How Bret Got Started with Pita Pit…
Bret Gibson learned about Pita Pit through his previous job, where he owned a flooring company. He was installing floor into a fraternity house and looking for a place to grab lunch. He stumbled across Pita Pit and gave it a try, where he said he knew instantaneously that this was a great concept that he had to be a part of. With a down economy, and the construction industry drying-up, Gibson decided he wanted a career change, “The first thing that entered my mind was Pita Pit, and the rest is history.”

Something Interesting About Bret’s Story…
Gibson is a self described entrepreneur at heart. As a child, he never was quite sure what he wanted to do, but saw and has now followed in his grandfather’s footsteps as a passionate entrepreneur, continuing in his family history. Other members of his family, brother, Derek MacArthur and friend, Geoffrey Eldridge are both involved with the Lewiston Pita Pit as its General Managers. The trio plan to continue in the development of the brand to bring this fresh concept to other areas throughout Idaho.

Community Involvement...
Gibson is definitely excited to really ingrain The Pita Pit into the Lewiston community. Besides being a part of the Chamber of Commerce, he wants to sponsor local sports teams and other community organizations.

Family Life…
Gibson and his wife, Sarah, have two children; son, Braxton,12 and daughter, Savannah,3.

Franchisee Profile: Tiffani Morrel of Pita Pit Glen Allen, VA

Today we are highlighting Tiffani Morrel in our franchisee profile. Tiffani is the franchisee of the Glen Allen, VA Pita Pit and has been a Pita Pit franchisee since April of 2009.

Location: 4040 Cox Rd., Glen Allen, VA 23060


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Tiffani’s Story…
Tiffani Morrel has been in the restaurant business since she was a teenager. Throughout her career she has moved up in the ranks from a waitress to a manager and now she is a restaurant owner of the Pita Pit. When looking for a new venture in the restaurant industry, Morrel and her husband, Norman, came across an opportunity to own an established franchise location in Glen Allen. The Morrel’s quickly jumped at the chance and now are part of a growing national healthy fast food franchise, with plans to expand the brand throughout Virginia.

Community Involvement…
Although the restaurant has only been under the Morrel’s ownership for less than a year, the Glen Allen location partakes in sponsorships and donations to local community groups, especially the local schools.

Family Involvement...
Tiffani and her husband, Norman, have a 4-year old girl named Gabriella. Norman Morrel is still involved in a career in computers, but helps out in the Pita Pit location as much as possible.

Franchisee Profile: Tim Goff of Pita Pit Sarasota, FL

Today we are highlighting Tim Goff in our franchisee profile. Tim is the franchisee of the Sarasota, FL Pita Pit and is approaching his 1 year anniversary with Pita Pit as he has been a Pita Pit franchisee since December of 2009.

Location: 6500 Superior Ave, Sarasota, FL 34231


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How Tim Got Started with Pita Pit…
After graduating college, Jim Goff went into the real estate industry. As an investment, he decided to open a restaurant and some friends of his from University of Florida couldn’t stop talking about Pita Pit. After researching the concept, Goff drove to Orlando to see what all the hype was about and was immediately sold. He opened his first location in Ft. Myers. When the real estate market got bad, he decided to take his franchising endeavors to a new level. He bought up two additional locations, Tampa and Tallahassee, and has re-opened them under his ownership. Now, he is adding a fourth to his profile with the opening of his newest location in Sarasota.

Something Interesting About Tim’s Story…
Goff, just 25-years old, owns three other Pita Pit locations; Ft. Myers, Tampa and Tallahassee. Goff is a self proclaimed entrepreneur since the age of 12-years old, where he has always tried to start-up his own businesses for profit. He has always been very business savvy in his thinking. He has big goals to continue the development of the Pita Pit brand throughout Florida with a goal to develop six locations per year.

Community Involvement...
Goff always tries to ingrain himself in the communities that he serves. He works with local school in providing free food for special events and sponsorships. He also is passionate about raising money for causes such as the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA), Breast Cancer Association and The American Heart Association. Last year, his Ft. Myers store raised $2,000 for MDA. He plans to continue in servicing the community and raising money for these causes in all his locations.

Family Life…
Gibson and his wife, Trisha, have a son Austin, 2.

Pita Pit Featured in The Advocate

Pita Pit was recently featured in The Advocate in Baton Rouge, LA where local entrepreneur Jack Brighenti is having a new opening on September 3, 2010. The newest Pita Pit location will be next to the LSU Campus in a new shopping complex, across the street from the campus. Jack Brighenti, 24-year old franchisee has two locations now, in New Orleans and Baton Rouge. Baton rouge will be featuring beer sales for the first time in the system and will stay open until 4 a.m. on Friday and Saturday nights, as well as serve delivery to the whole city. Jack has plans to further expand the brand in Louisiana adding additional units in Baton Rouge, New Orleans, Lafayette and Hammond. Below is a portion of the article and you can view the article in its entirety here.

Chain restaurant Pita Pit branch to open near LSU
By CHAD CALDER

Pita Pit, a chain restaurant promoting itself as the healthy alternative in the fast-casual segment, is opening today in the Northgate area near LSU and plans another four in Baton Rouge over the next few years.

The local franchisee is Jack Brighenti, a 24-year-old who opened the 180-unit chain’s other Louisiana location, on Magazine Street in New Orleans.
Brighenti said Thursday that he is scouting locations and plans another four units in Baton Rouge and four in New Orleans, “but we’re also looking at Lafayette and Hammond. Those are pretty interesting markets.”

The timetable for this expansion, he said, is about three or four years.
Brighenti said the key is locating restaurants near colleges and universities, where Pita Pit’s healthier fare and late hours can find a market.

He said the Pita Pit opening today in the shopping center anchored by the new CVS pharmacy will serve Abita beers and Michelob Ultra and will offer daily dollar-beer specials.

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