Toppers’ first and oldest franchisees are Andy and Caro Johnson. You can’t tell, but I just paused for a couple minutes and stared at that first sentence.  It means a lot; they mean a lot – to me personally and to Toppers Pizza.  It’s possible Toppers wouldn’t exist without them; for sure it wouldn’t be the same.  They took a chance on Toppers and me when it was a lot more of a chance than it is today.  When they opened their first store it was only the 3^rd Toppers Pizza in existence!  That store and all of their stores are some of the best run restaurants you’ll ever find (not just at Toppers).  They bleed Toppers and so does their incredible and long tenured team.  You can visit their restaurants in and around Eau Claire, WI.

Our second franchisee was and is Bill Stayduhar. He owns stores in Charlotte, NC and is one of my favorite pizza people of all time.  And he’s a friend.  We were both Dominos guys “back in the day”.  Back when I was not only Toppers’ CEO, but also the Franchise Consultant, Real Estate Director, VP of Supply Chain, HR Manager, and a handful of other roles, I would sleep on Bill and Aimee’s couch when I travelled to Charlotte to work.  Bill’s values, personality and restaurant smarts are weaved into Toppers DNA forever.

Our third franchisees were and are Phil and Denise Downing. Their headquarters are in Lacrosse, WI and they run stores in Wisconsin, Minnesota, and soon to be Iowa.  They met each other when they were in their early 20s working at the original Toppers store in Whitewater!  I remember the day they opened their first store.  We took a picture of Phil clicking the open sign on, and then we went out with menus to teach people who the heck Toppers Pizza was.  Like Andy, Caro, and Bill, the Toppers story can’t be told without them.  They have made and do make Toppers what it is today.

Phil Downing, 2002

Today Toppers has 73 stores in 12 states and has tripled in size in about 4 years.  There are more than 20 franchisees and 2000 Toppers team members in Toppers Nation and it’s as exciting as ever to be at Toppers because of the fabulous growth and momentum we have.  In my role as CEO, I take any opportunity I’m given to share our vision for the future and to invite fabulous people to join us.

But you know what’s hard? It’s hard to not be as close to people like these three franchisees that I just told you about.  We all have much bigger businesses with a lot more people that we are connected to.  We all had kids, bought houses, and built an ever growing circle of friends and colleagues.  And it’s not just them.  The truth is that as our company grows, new and different people join the mix, the group gets bigger and relationships change.  There’s a certain melancholy to that fact, but for me it’s also thrilling.

A couple of weeks ago Toppers’ franchisees gathered together for a leadership conference.  They are a fabulous group of driven restaurant people, connected by values, a vision for the future, and common business interests.  But, just like Phil and Denise met under a Toppers logo, these franchisees are also  good friends and future friends and that’s pretty cool.

Most of our growth each year comes from our existing franchisees opening more and more restaurants, but we will selectively add 5- 8 new franchisees this year.  While it’s true that today our new franchisees are business people and experienced restauranteurs that are well financed, they are also fun and passionate people whose values align with ours, who love what they do, and who know how to take care of team members and customers!  We know what gives us our mojo, and we aren’t going to give that up.  A truth for Toppers People is that we treasure what we have, but we want more.  We were born to grow.  We are always on the verge of busting out.  We have that Never Settle spirit!

With Andy & Caro Johnson, 2014

I cherish my role at Toppers and the relationships that I have.  I recognize that who Toppers is today, what we have accomplished in the past and what we will do in the future is all about people:  Toppers people – those that have been around since the beginning and those not-yet Toppers people we will meet next week.  As a father of 5 kids I can tell you with confidence:  if you have your priorities straight, love multiplies, it doesn’t divide!

Looking forward >

Scott