Extreme Pita
![](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/8/87/Extreme_Pita_logo.svg/220px-Extreme_Pita_logo.svg.png) |
![](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/02/ExtremePitaEdmonton.jpg/220px-ExtremePitaEdmonton.jpg) |
Founded
| 1997
; 27 years ago
(
1997
)
in
Waterloo, Ontario
|
---|
Founders
| Alex and Mark Rechichi
|
---|
Headquarters
| Richmond Hill
,
Ontario
|
---|
Number of locations
| 175
|
---|
Area served
| Canada, United States
|
---|
Products
| Pita wraps, salads, pita pizzas
|
---|
Revenue
| $45 million (2006)
[1]
|
---|
Number of employees
| 2,000
|
---|
Parent
| |
---|
Website
| extremepita
.com
|
---|
Extreme Pita
is a Canadian-based
fast-casual
chain, owned by
MTY Group
. Headquartered in
Richmond Hill, Ontario
, the company has more than 175 units throughout Canada and the United States.
Extreme Pita serves
pita
sandwiches,
salads
, and pizza-style "flat-baked" pitas. Available ingredients include fresh vegetables, cheeses, meats and vegetarian options such as
falafel
and
hummus
.
History
[
edit
]
Extreme Pita was founded in 1997
[2]
by brothers Alex and Mark Rechichi.
[3]
The first Extreme Pita opened near
Wilfrid Laurier University
in
Waterloo, Ontario
in 1997,
[4]
but the original location is no longer operating.
The company continued to expand and grow over the years, expanding into new locations in Canada, from 1997 (the year when the first Extreme Pita was opened) to 2003 (when Extreme Pita began to expand into the United States). The expansion challenged already-established fast food companies like
Subway
and
McDonald's
. By 2007, there were about 200 stores in Canada. Extreme Pita claims they are a healthy low fat snack, and is also well known for its vegetarian options.
The Canadian-based Extreme Pita began to expand to include stores in the United States in 2003,
[5]
beginning with Arizona.
[6]
The company has continued to add locations throughout the United States, mainly through
franchising
. Since 2003, Extreme Pita has expanded into locations in California,
[7]
New York,
[8]
Texas,
[9]
and other parts of the Western, Mideastern, and Northeastern United States.
[4]
In May 2013, Extreme Pita was acquired by MTY Food Group when MTY purchased Extreme Pita's then parent Extreme Brandz from the Rechichi brothers for $45-million.
[10]
Extreme Brandz
[
edit
]
Extreme Brandz was formed as a holding company for Extreme Pita in 2006 when the owners of Extreme Pita decided to expand into the Mexican fast food business through the launching of
Mucho Burrito
.
[11]
PurBlendz was launched in 2008 as smoothie co-brand for existing Extreme Pita operators.
[12]
Products
[
edit
]
Extreme Pita sells a variety of pita wraps, including cheese steak, falafel and chicken Caesar selections,
[8]
wrapped in "Lebanese-style" pita bread.
[5]
These pitas are available in 6 inch and 9 inch sizes.
The company also offers soups, salads, and a variety of flat-bread pizza pitas, baked on location.
[8]
[14]
Its products are portrayed as a "healthy alternative to fast food." For example, the cheese and meat used to make their products are unprocessed.
[8]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Goll, David (2007-03-09).
"Chain takes pita mainstream"
.
East Bay Business Times
. Retrieved
2008-09-13
.
- ^
"Company Profile"
. The Extreme Pita. 2006. Archived from
the original
on 2008-07-28
. Retrieved
2008-09-12
.
- ^
Ryval, Michael (2008-05-05).
"Alex Rechichi, 34"
.
The Globe and Mail
.
- ^
a
b
Goll, David (2007-03-16).
"Arizona on list for Canadian pita concept's franchise plans"
.
Phoenix Business Journal
. Retrieved
2008-09-13
.
- ^
a
b
Brown, Dale (2003-12-11).
"Extreme Pita restaurant's formal launch to be a heart benefit"
.
Phoenix Business Journal
. Retrieved
2008-09-12
.
- ^
"Canadian chain plans to add 25 Arizona restaurants"
.
Phoenix Business Journal
. 2007-09-27
. Retrieved
2008-09-13
.
- ^
Brevetti, Francine (2007-05-08).
"Extreme Pita hankers after the Bay Area"
. BNET, reprinted from the Oakland Tribune
. Retrieved
2015-10-10
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
Theis, Laura (2007-07-06).
"Brooklyn native acquires rights to build out Extreme Pita brand"
. BNET, reprinted from Long Island Business News. Archived from
the original
on 2009-12-11
. Retrieved
2008-09-12
.
- ^
Silva, Tricia Lynn (2005-12-02).
"New eateries dishing up fresh ideas in Alamo City"
.
San Antonio Business Journal
. Retrieved
2008-09-13
.
- ^
Van Praet, Nicolas (2013-05-28).
"Food court mogul Stanley Ma bets big on U.S. with $45M deal to buy Extreme Brandz fast-food chains"
.
Financial Post
.
- ^
"Extreme Brandz Standardizes POS Across 350 QSRs"
.
Hospitality Technology
. 2013-03-29.
- ^
Tchernina, Maya (2011-12-09).
"Making it Big: Extreme Brandz Takes the Lead"
.
Foodservice and Hospitality magazine
.
- ^
Hill, David W. (2007-09-12).
"Plain pita? Not at new Extreme eatery"
.
The Modesto Bee
. Archived from
the original
on 2013-01-29
. Retrieved
2008-09-12
.
External links
[
edit
]
|
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Kahala
(in USA)
| |
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Canada-based
companies
| |
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Canada only
franchises
| |
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Other USA
| |
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