After almost a year in business, Cape Coral Little Caesars owner Jim Addis has been named “Outstanding Franchisee of the Year” by the corporate headquarters.
“I think it was based on a few things, like how we run our business, outstanding customer service and keeping our Hot-N-Ready promise,” he said.
The Hot-N-Ready promise, Addis said, is that for $5, a customer can get a large, 14-inch, fresh-from-the-oven pizza in 30 seconds or less after coming in the door.
“I think that is the kind of value and convenience people look for,” he said. “They don’t want to have to call ahead or wait 20 minutes for a pizza, they want to pick it up and go.”
It’s that Hot-N-Ready promise that keep customers coming back. So much so, Addis will be opening a second location Tuesday at 1622 Del Prado Blvd.. S., across from Wal-Mart and said a third one is in the works for the Cape.
Addis also does a lot outside of the day-to-day operations, which probably pushed him over the top to receive the honor of franchisee of year. In addition to owning, managing and occasionally making the pizza, Addis sits on the Little Caesars Zone Council for the state of Florida, which, he said, adds a “positive light” on him and the franchisees he helps. Being a member of the board, he said, allows him to act as a liaison between local franchisees and the corporate board.
Hailing from Michigan, Addis is no stranger to the Little Caesars franchise. His grandfather, Steve Doinidis, was the 15th person ever to open up one of its stores in 1968. That location is still in operation today in Dearborn, Mich., under the watchful eye of his uncle. In the ’70s, his mother and father built and bought and sold a few Little Caesars of their own.
“Little Caesars has been in my family for years,” he said.
Even today his cousin, Mark Doinidis, is his “right hand man,” and with so much of his family emersed in the business, it was only fitting after Addis graduated from Michigan State University that he got a job with a major pharmaceutical company?
“I even managed a Little Caesars when I was in college but I still decided to go down the path of big, corporate America,” he said.
After a few years in corporate rat race, Addis found his enturpernerial spirit was just too much to keep under wraps and he opened the store at 1715 Cape Coral Parkway with his cousin.
“I learned I just wasn’t interested in working for big, corporate America” he said.
Even though Addis lives in Fort Myers, he thought Cape Coral was a more fitting place to open his first of many stores, since there are so many working-class families in the area.
“It seemed Cape needed a value pizza shop that could serve families with a high quality, low-price meal,” he said.
And that quality and value are exactly what Little Caesars serves up daily.
“That’s my philosophy, to offer great food at a good price,” he said. “It seems that things keep getting more expensive every day but I know if I give back to the customers, they will take care of us.”
And aside from serving up a great pizza, Addis said it’s important his staff of more that 60 has a good time doing so.
“When you walk in the door you can just feel the energy,” he said. “We always have music playing and everyone has a smile on their face.”
Addis said there’s about 15 people per shift always working to ensure that when a customer comes through the door, there’s a Hot-N-Ready pizza waiting.
“It’s like an assembly line,” he laughed. “But that’s how we can offer a fresh-made pizza in seconds. It’s all about convenience and keeping the customer happy.”
So as of Tuesday — whether it’s southwest or central Cape Coral — if you have $5, there will be a happy, friendly staffers just waiting to serve you a hot, fresh Little Caesars pizza that will feed the whole family.