Tuesday, December 18, 2007, Jennifer Youssef / The Detroit News

Two well-known Metro Detroit restaurant brands say they’re poised to quickly expand in the region and across the country following their October merger.

Several new Papa Romano’s pizza shops and Mr. Pita sandwich stores are scheduled to open in Metro Detroit — including White Lake, Sterling Heights and Detroit — and in other out-of-state markets in the next few months, according to the company. Some will be stand-alone stores, while others will combine both restaurants in one building. A co-branded restaurant is expected to open early next year at the Compuware building in Detroit.

Chairman and CEO Casey Askar said the newly combined company already has signed franchise agreements to open in Orlando, Fla., Raleigh, N.C. and various locations in Michigan

Management has identified key growth markets in Michigan, New York, Virginia, North Carolina, Florida, Texas, Colorado and Nevada, and plans to open more than 50 units in the next two years, Askar said.

Most of the new stores in Michigan will be Papa Romano’s, while the pita end of the business is really growing in other states, Askar said. “It really is a great fit,” Askar said of the merger, noting that Mr. Pita is busier during lunchtime and on weekdays while Papa Romano’s does well during dinner time and on the weekends. The company, which is private, declined to disclose revenue or profit figures.

The merger could be very successful if it is operated right, said Sherri Daye Scott, editor of QSR Magazine, a food services trade publication. One example she noted is Yum! Brands, Inc., which operates KFC, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, A&W and Long John Silver’s.

“A merger works well in some cases, but in other cases it doesn’t,” Scott said, adding that the fact that Mr. Pita does most of its business in the afternoons and Papa Romano’s is busier at night is a good sign that the brands complement one another.

Mr. Pita was established in 1993 and Papa Romano’s was founded in 1970. Askar purchased the 50-plus store Papa Romano’s chain from former owner and founder Ronald Hancock.

Since then, Askar has renovated and updated the stores, opened three new locations, including a new prototype in Ann Arbor, and purchased seven formerly franchised Papa Romano’s locations that now operate as company-owned stores, according to the company.

Two well-known Metro Detroit restaurant brands say they’re poised to quickly expand in the region and across the country following their October merger.

Several new Papa Romano’s pizza shops and Mr. Pita sandwich stores are scheduled to open in Metro Detroit — including White Lake, Sterling Heights and Detroit — and in other out-of-state markets in the next few months, according to the company. Some will be stand-alone stores, while others will combine both restaurants in one building. A co-branded restaurant is expected to open early next year at the Compuware building in Detroit

Chairman and CEO Casey Askar said the newly combined company already has signed franchise agreements to open in Orlando, Fla., Raleigh, N.C. and various locations in Michigan.