California Pizza Kitchen
Encyclopedia
California Pizza Kitchen , known within the food industry as CPK, is a casual dining
restaurant chain that specializes in California-style pizza
. The restaurant was started in 1985 by attorney
s Rick Rosenfield and Larry Flax in Beverly Hills, California
, United States
.
The chain is widely known for its innovative and non traditional pizzas, such as the "Original BBQ Chicken Pizza", BLT
, Thai
Chicken, and Jamaican Jerk Chicken pizzas. They also serve various kinds of pasta, salads, soups, sandwiches and desserts. They have an extensive children's menu for children ages 10 and under which includes a variety of different pizzas, pastas, salad, and chicken.
The chain has over 230 locations in 32 US states and eleven other countries, including 26 California Pizza Kitchen ASAP kiosk
s designed to serve passengers at airport
s and shopping mall
s. The company licensed its name to Kraft Foods
to distribute a line of premium frozen pizzas.; Nestlé
purchased Kraft's pizza lines in 2010.
in Beverly Hills, California
. Almost immediately the restaurant was a success, and the company expanded throughout Southern California
. By 1992, there were 26 CPKs.
In 1992, PepsiCo
paid nearly $100 million for 67 percent of the chain, with Flax and Rosenfield each receiving $17.5 million. At the time this was thought to be more than CPK was worth, and PepsiCo pushed to expand faster. CPK opened 15 stores in 1993 and 28 in the following year, a plan which was a disaster. PepsiCo had invested tens of millions of dollars in debt on its hands and quickly slowed expansion and moved to cut costs. PepsiCo executives had started cutting corners by replacing fresh ingredients with frozen vegetables and cheese (a change Flax and Rosenfield reversed later).
In 1997, the private equity firm Bruckmann, Rosser, Sherrill & Company bought out PepsiCo’s two-thirds stake with the intention of taking CPK public in 2000, pushing for expansion to resume. Veteran restaurant executive Fred Hipp was hired to run CPK with an aggressive expansion plan including 18 new stores in 2002, 22 in 2003, and 28 in 2004. The expansion was to be carried out by former Brinker International
vice president, Tom Jenneman, under the title of Chief Development Officer. Flax and Rosenfield remained on the board but had no day-to-day control.
In early 2003, CPK reported a 16 percent increase in profits, with Hipp telling analysts that CPK was in excellent financial condition. In a March 25, 2003, press release CPK cut its first-quarter earnings estimates, which didn’t make sense given the positive forecast laid out just a few weeks earlier. Rosenfield investigated the numbers and discovered the positive earnings numbers Hipp had been touting were masking difficult quarters ahead. An emergency board meeting was called, Hipp and Jenneman were fired, and Flax and Rosenfield resumed control of CPK.
Mexico Philippines Singapore South Korea United Arab Emirates United States
Casual dining
This is a list of casual dining restaurant chains around the world, arranged in alphabetical order. A casual dining restaurant is a restaurant that serves moderately-priced food in a casual atmosphere...
restaurant chain that specializes in California-style pizza
California-style pizza
California-style pizza is a style of single-serving pizza that combines New York and Italian thin crust with toppings from the California cuisine cooking style. Wolfgang Puck popularized this style of pizza...
. The restaurant was started in 1985 by attorney
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
s Rick Rosenfield and Larry Flax in Beverly Hills, California
Beverly Hills, California
Beverly Hills is an affluent city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. With a population of 34,109 at the 2010 census, up from 33,784 as of the 2000 census, it is home to numerous Hollywood celebrities. Beverly Hills and the neighboring city of West Hollywood are together...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Description
BLT sandwich
A BLT is a type of bacon sandwich. The standard BLT is made up of five ingredients: bacon, lettuce, tomato, mayonnaise, and bread. The five ingredients can be altered according to preference; for example, the bread can be toasted and the mayonnaise home-made...
, Thai
Cuisine of Thailand
Thai cuisine is the national cuisine of Thailand. Blending elements of several Southeast Asian traditions, Thai cooking places emphasis on lightly prepared dishes with strong aromatic components. The spiciness of Thai cuisine is well known. As with other Asian cuisines, balance, detail and variety...
Chicken, and Jamaican Jerk Chicken pizzas. They also serve various kinds of pasta, salads, soups, sandwiches and desserts. They have an extensive children's menu for children ages 10 and under which includes a variety of different pizzas, pastas, salad, and chicken.
The chain has over 230 locations in 32 US states and eleven other countries, including 26 California Pizza Kitchen ASAP kiosk
Kiosk
Kiosk is a small, separated garden pavilion open on some or all sides. Kiosks were common in Persia, India, Pakistan, and in the Ottoman Empire from the 13th century onward...
s designed to serve passengers at airport
Airport
An airport is a location where aircraft such as fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and blimps take off and land. Aircraft may be stored or maintained at an airport...
s and shopping mall
Shopping mall
A shopping mall, shopping centre, shopping arcade, shopping precinct or simply mall is one or more buildings forming a complex of shops representing merchandisers, with interconnecting walkways enabling visitors to easily walk from unit to unit, along with a parking area — a modern, indoor version...
s. The company licensed its name to Kraft Foods
Kraft Foods
Kraft Foods Inc. is an American confectionery, food and beverage conglomerate. It markets many brands in more than 170 countries. 12 of its brands annually earn more than $1 billion worldwide: Cadbury, Jacobs, Kraft, LU, Maxwell House, Milka, Nabisco, Oscar Mayer, Philadelphia, Trident, Tang...
to distribute a line of premium frozen pizzas.; Nestlé
Nestlé
Nestlé S.A. is the world's largest food and nutrition company. Founded and headquartered in Vevey, Switzerland, Nestlé originated in a 1905 merger of the Anglo-Swiss Milk Company, established in 1867 by brothers George Page and Charles Page, and Farine Lactée Henri Nestlé, founded in 1866 by Henri...
purchased Kraft's pizza lines in 2010.
History
In 1985, Flax and Rosenfield pooled $200,000 in bank loans and savings along with $350,000 invested from friends to lease space on Beverly DriveBeverly Drive
Beverly Drive is a major north-south roadway in Beverly Hills and Los Angeles.South Beverly Drive begins northbound at Harlow Avenue, a small street just north of the Santa Monica Freeway in the city of Los Angeles. It passes through the residential neighborhood of Beverlywood and intersects with...
in Beverly Hills, California
Beverly Hills, California
Beverly Hills is an affluent city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. With a population of 34,109 at the 2010 census, up from 33,784 as of the 2000 census, it is home to numerous Hollywood celebrities. Beverly Hills and the neighboring city of West Hollywood are together...
. Almost immediately the restaurant was a success, and the company expanded throughout Southern California
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
. By 1992, there were 26 CPKs.
In 1992, PepsiCo
PepsiCo
PepsiCo Inc. is an American multinational corporation headquartered in Purchase, New York, United States, with interests in the manufacturing, marketing and distribution of grain-based snack foods, beverages, and other products. PepsiCo was formed in 1965 with the merger of the Pepsi-Cola Company...
paid nearly $100 million for 67 percent of the chain, with Flax and Rosenfield each receiving $17.5 million. At the time this was thought to be more than CPK was worth, and PepsiCo pushed to expand faster. CPK opened 15 stores in 1993 and 28 in the following year, a plan which was a disaster. PepsiCo had invested tens of millions of dollars in debt on its hands and quickly slowed expansion and moved to cut costs. PepsiCo executives had started cutting corners by replacing fresh ingredients with frozen vegetables and cheese (a change Flax and Rosenfield reversed later).
In 1997, the private equity firm Bruckmann, Rosser, Sherrill & Company bought out PepsiCo’s two-thirds stake with the intention of taking CPK public in 2000, pushing for expansion to resume. Veteran restaurant executive Fred Hipp was hired to run CPK with an aggressive expansion plan including 18 new stores in 2002, 22 in 2003, and 28 in 2004. The expansion was to be carried out by former Brinker International
Brinker International
Brinker International, Inc. , is the parent company of Chili's and Maggiano's Little Italy.-History:It was founded in 1975 as Chili's Bar and Grill, purchased by restaurateur Norman E. Brinker in 1983 and rechristened Brinker International in 1990; it now has more than 1,500 restaurants worldwide...
vice president, Tom Jenneman, under the title of Chief Development Officer. Flax and Rosenfield remained on the board but had no day-to-day control.
In early 2003, CPK reported a 16 percent increase in profits, with Hipp telling analysts that CPK was in excellent financial condition. In a March 25, 2003, press release CPK cut its first-quarter earnings estimates, which didn’t make sense given the positive forecast laid out just a few weeks earlier. Rosenfield investigated the numbers and discovered the positive earnings numbers Hipp had been touting were masking difficult quarters ahead. An emergency board meeting was called, Hipp and Jenneman were fired, and Flax and Rosenfield resumed control of CPK.
Countries of operation
China Indonesia India Hong Kong Japan MalaysiaMexico Philippines Singapore South Korea United Arab Emirates United States
External links
- California Pizza Kitchen Official website
- CPK Pizza Nutrition