Popular pizza-and-ice cream chain enjoys Q1 successes of all kinds
Happy Joe’s Pizza & Ice Cream always works to make sure guests are smiling, giving them all the pizza and ice cream needed to make happy memories. In the first quarter of 2024, the team at Happy Joe’s got to smile — thanks to industry awards, new stores, growth and expansion, partnership and innovation, industry coverage, and big plans for the rest of the year.
Happy Joe’s kicked off the year by partnering with CORE raising funds to support the restaurant 501(c)(3) charity that is focused on taking care of the Children Of Restaurant Employees CoreGives.org by contributing $1 from every Chocolate Chip Pizza Cookie sold in January and February.
Coming right out of that “happy” initiative, Happy Joe’s was informed that it was being ranked in Pizza Marketplace as one of the Top 100 Movers & Shakers and also made the Top 25 overall out of 75 top brands ranked in the entire pizza industry. It marks the second year in a row that Happy Joe’s was recognized for excellence compared to the thousands of pizza brands operating in the U.S., Canada and around the globe. In addition, Tom Sacco, CEO/President & Chief Happiness Officer, ranked as one of “the Top 15 Pizza Executives in the U.S.” for the second consecutive year.
Growth was also on the menu with Happy Joe’s breaking ground at its newest freestanding location of the year in Navarre, Fla. This restaurant is set to open towards the end of Q3 and will feature Happy Joe’s brand new prototype with an excellent curb appeal featuring modernized furniture, a pizza drive-thru, neon signage, and much more that its customers will love.
The expansion of the brand continued with the signing of an area development agreement that plans for six new Happy Joe’s locations in Minnesota’s Twin Cities area. These restaurants are scheduled to be open by late 2024 or early 2025, and interested franchisees should contact Kat Davidson at KatD@DRHnow.com.
With all this growth, upgrading to the latest technology is essential to keep providing the best possible guest experience. That’s why Happy Joe’s partnered with ORCA, the innovative restaurant inventory management software that enables the brand to continue providing high-quality food for its customers and maximize economies of scale and efficiencies for our franchisees.
The entire industry is taking notice of the great things happening at Happy Joe’s. Tom Sacco was interviewed for a cover story in The Entrepreneur Times, and his insights were published in a roundup article by Fast Casual labeled “Why AI is 2024’s top restaurant tech trend.” Plus, Happy Joe’s was mentioned in a Valentine’s Day roundup article in Pizza Marketplace talking about how “Heart-shaped pizzas increase sales,” and to round out the media, Sacco was hosted on the Deeper Dive Podcast by QSR Editor-in-Chief Jonathan Maze discussing “How to modernize a 50-year-old pizza chain.”
Happy Joe’s has plenty of goals for the rest of 2024, with various plans for further growth and innovation. The brand has several new franchisees signed, including in Fargo, North Dakota, and a suburb of Phoenix, AZ. In Q2, the team is testing out a robot, BearRobotics.ai, that will deliver food into the dining room and bring the bus tubs back to the dish room, so the front-of-the-house staff never has to leave the guests in the dining room without being attended to by a real person.
“You can see the passion for pizza and creating happy memories for our guests in everything our team does,” said Sacco. “Introducing more people to our brand by opening restaurants in new markets, creating new menu items, implementing new technologies — it’s all part of our mission to make our customers smile!”
To learn more about Happy Joe’s, visit HappyJoes.com. For those interested in Happy Joe’s franchising opportunities, email Kat Davidson at KatD@DRHnow.com or call 678.485.8413.
Founded in 1972 by Joe Whitty in Davenport, Iowa, Happy Joe’s dream was to create a restaurant concept that focused on serving America’s two favorite foods – pizza and ice cream – in a family-friendly, celebratory environment. Owned and operated by Dynamic Restaurant Holdings Inc., Happy Joe’s has been named a QSR Magazine “Top 50 Contender,” Pizza Marketplace “Top 100 Movers and Shakers” pizza brand, FastCasual “Top 200” concept, Franchise Times “Top 400” business, and Nation’s Restaurant News “Top 500” restaurant. The family-centric pizza brand has three companies and 43 franchise locations throughout the Midwest, with more in the pipeline. To learn more, visit HappyJoes.com, contact Kat Davidson at KatD@DRHnow.com, or follow Happy Joe’s on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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