Seeking the perfect space for your next store? There’s a reason why major chains and independents alike are choosing non-traditional locations. Consider the success of a Donatos Pizza franchisee in Columbus, Ohio.
He owns two spots in that city’s John Glenn International Airport. And, according to the Columbus Dispatch, they’re two of Donatos’ highest performers.
One is situated in Concourse A, where Southwest Airlines flights come and go, and the other is in Concourse C, where you’ll board for a trip via Delta Airlines. “Those that don’t live here anymore and are just visiting—they’ll get it on the way in and the way out,” Robert E. Lee III, the owner-operator of both airport Donatos stores, told the Columbus Dispatch. “We’re local and loved.”
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Lee employs a total of 45 people for the two locations. They open at 6 a.m. and offer a breakfast pizza for travelers with early flights. Pies are only available in 7” and 12” sizes, and, compared to non-airport Donatos prices, they’re a good bit pricier. Since airport customers have limited food choices and likely prefer pizza to just about anything else, they pay $7.89 for the 7” and $19.29 for the 12” pizzas. At a nearby Donatos on North Cassady Avenue, those same pizzas sell for $5.89 and $13.39.
And if the customer is really pressed for time—the airlines wait for no one, after all—Lee’s team members will rush the pie to their gate, even sometimes to the plane itself.
Lee’s so good at his job, Donatos once named him their franchise partner of the year. “You won’t find a better restaurateur than Robert,” the chain’s CEO, Tom Krouse, told the Columbus Dispatch, “because for him, it’s always all about the people—his team, his customers and the community.”